


I'm Not Me Without You

by smilingsarah10



Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Getting Together, Kink, M/M, Multi, Polyamory, Safe Sane and Consensual, bdsm verse, established relationships - Freeform, world building
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-17
Updated: 2016-09-12
Packaged: 2018-07-24 12:29:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 37,454
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7508314
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/smilingsarah10/pseuds/smilingsarah10
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In a world where you know if you're a submissive, a dominant, or a switch by the time you come of age, it can still be hard to find your match. It doesn't get easier when you are destined for more than one. The boys figure out ways to make it work for them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Building of Us

**Author's Note:**

> This is a pet project of mine to help me break up my writers block. The first chapter doesn't contain sex (sorry y'all) but after the first one the chapters will be either fluff or smut all through a kinky lense and with minimal angst (but I know myself so I can't promise none). Also keep in mind that this fix won't update super regularly because I have about 6 WiPs to keep up with and no posting schedules.  
> I rarely ever feel like showing the kink negotiation, so if it is not specifically listed, just know that it happened off chapter. Without further ado, enjoy.

Washington was at a party where many people in the social elite came to mingle and find love. As a CEO, George had been to many of these parties before, never really finding what exactly he was looking for. This time though, he had been watching one boy in particular as he had been flirting with the room, switching between being a dom or a sub depending on what the people around him wanted. The spectacle had garnered him lots of attention, both positive and negative, as society had mixed feelings on the legitimacy of being a switch. 

George had seen him make eyes at him, but was biding his time before he walked over. Before he could, the boy was surrounded by a group of men and women who seemed to make him cower. There was a difference between submission and being bullied and George was reading that this situation was the latter. He got up from where he was standing and approached the group. Before he could speak, he heard one of the men taunt, “Being a switch isn’t even a real thing. It just means you’re a dom who couldn’t control a sub or a sub that is so undesirable that no dom would want you.” 

George was livid. He didn’t even know this boy, but he felt the need to defend him stronger than he’d felt about anyone up to that point. George looked to see the anger in the boy’s eyes, but was instead met with shame and self-loathing. His eyes reflected tears that spoke volumes about how many times he had heard comments like those before. George wondered how many times that poor boy had gone home alone feeling like that. The thought made his stomach churn. 

As he ruminated on these thoughts, he became madder and madder until, unable to control his rage, he stepped forward into the middle of the group where the boy hung his head. “Son, look at me.” The boy’s eyes shot up to meet his. “You are not broken. You are beautiful,” he took the chance to sun one of his hands along the boy’s cheekbone, stopping a tear before it could fall. The boy looked at George with something that looked like hope. George could feel the boys strength just under the surface and tried to think of a way to bring it out. 

Gripping the boy’s hair, he tugged until there was fire behind his eyes that matched George’s. “You are strong. You are worth more than anyone here will give you credit for. And with a little training, you could prove all of these people wrong.” 

The boy looked George over from where he was being held, licking his lips before whispering, “And who would train me, Sir? None will have me.” 

George let a growl creep into his voice. He finally pinpointed his feeling: possessive. “Anyone would be lucky to have you. I would be honored if you’d like to discuss it more outside this circle?” 

Laf gave an almost imperceptible nod. George let go of his hair and grabbed his hand. The people who had been harassing him were looking anywhere but George in embarrassment. “Who here is claimed?” The group all responded one way or another. George looked to see that most of the crowd was wearing signs of being a submissive or the band of a dom. “I will see to it that your partner knows what has happened today. I’m taking this boy, and we,” George picked up the boy and turned from the crowd, “We are going home.” 

\----------

Laf was kneeling on a pillow at George’s feet at the club they frequently visited when they wanted to go out when the idea had come to him. As their relationship was a little unconventional, people always stared at him for the lack of a visible collar. He couldn’t wear his collar in public because most of the time he was going straight out from work, and most modelling groups wanted the model in whatever jewelry they provided with no outside influence. Knowing this and seemingly always full of answers, George had suggested a more permanent solution to claiming him. 

George’s hands played across the newly healed tattoo on the back of his neck, hidden by his hair. It matched the one on George’s neck, concealed by his tie, that read, “feu de mon âme,” or “fire of my soul” as George was always saying that Laf was like a fire; able to provide warmth and life but more likely to burn out if in the wrong hands. Laf followed George willingly, submitting on days that called for full submission, and watching and learning from George on days that he felt more dominant. George was the first one in his whole life to accept him for what he was completely, but Laf believed that George needed someone who would submit fully to him. That thought in that moment is what made him make a snap decision and ask a question he had only really dreamed about. 

“Permission to speak, Sir.” George looked down from his glass, tipping Laf’s chin up so that his eyes weren’t pointed to the floor. He could sense the wheels turning in Laf’s head, but couldn’t anticipate the question. “Freely, what is it, son? You seem distressed.” 

Laf paused, searching for the right words. “Sir,” he started with trepidation, “Have you ever considered adding someone? Perhaps a … true… submissive?” 

George studied his face for a moment before pulling him from his knees to George’s lap. “Are you doubting my affections? What do you mean a ‘true’ submissive?” 

Laf shook his head vehemently. “No, Sir, I just mean… maybe someone who would submit all the time and wouldn’t be such a hassle…” 

George put a finger to his lips. Laf stilled in his lap letting out the air he didn’t realize he had been holding. “I’m very much in love with you. You’re more than enough for me, and I can only hope that I satisfy you as well. But, if you wanted a playmate, I would not be opposed to at least looking. I think that it would be best if we looked for two though, that way there is a balance and no one feels left out. And it wouldn’t be an easy transition. Balance is something that we would have to work at constantly. You’d have to be ready for that before we started looking.” 

He rubbed circles into Laf’s back, reassurance that he would always be there and that the idea wasn’t stupid. “How do you know you’ve found the right person?” Laf asked, sounding young and unsure. 

George made him make eye contact again, wanting to make the moment count. “You never know for sure right off the bat. You have to follow your gut instincts. When I saw you, I knew you were strong and that you would being out the strength in both of us whether you knew it at the time or not. Some doms find their subs by feeling like they need to protect them all of the sudden. Some recognize loyalty or intelligence or playfulness. What I feel for you won’t necessarily be what you feel for them. That’s the beauty of it. Every single relationship is different. I’ll buy you some more books if that’s what you’d like?” Laf hummed, tabling the topic for the moment and dropping back to his knees. George went back to his drink, but never let his hand fall from its resting place on the back of Laf’s neck. 

\----------

“Relax, Marquis. I have it on good authority that you’re going to be perfect for John and will find Alex amusing at least.” George was holding his hand as they sat side by side at a table in the back of the club. 

They’d been preparing for this moment for a couple of years. They’d moved into a larger house, worked on their own relationship, and Laf had taken more seriously to learning about being a good Dom while serving George to the best of his ability. George had started the search a few months prior; Laf trusting him to pick options that would work for them both. 

A week before, after a scene had ended and they were cuddling on the couch, George had pulled up the Facebook pages of two younger men. John was an up and coming artist dabbling in many different medias to find what he best liked while Alex was a writer, first published at 16 with a book on submissive rights and the quality of life in modern day society and many more works since. A friend of a friend had pointed George in their direction: they apparently had lived together for a while as a submissive pair, but they were interested in finding Doms. They just didn’t know a safe way to start looking. 

George had reached out to Alex around a month prior to the meeting to feel him out, and they’d talked about the dynamics that both couplets were looking for. When George felt comfortable with them, he had brought them up to Laf, and they all decided to meet in person. Which is what had brought them out to the club that evening. 

George, seemingly always confident, looked regal and poised sipping on his Old Fashioned like he owned the place. Laf matched his posture as best he could, but his nerves showed through in his fingers drumming against his thigh, his foot tapping against the floor, and his eyes constantly filtering over the crowd searching for the boys from just their Facebook profile pictures. 

There was still time before they were officially supposed to meet. Laf started to get out of his seat, using the excuse of the bathroom as a way to get up and walk off some of the jitters. George rolled his eyes, recognizing the ruse immediately, but let him up with a quick kiss and a pat on the ass. 

The club itself was packed as it was one of the few in town that allowed a mixture of people who were claimed and unclaimed and open to all dynamics. For the club, being at capacity was a good thing as more business was good business, but for Laf who was still trying to sort the crowd, it was an annoyance. 

He was almost to the bathroom when his attention was drawn to a small back hallway. He couldn’t see past where there were two men standing shoulder to shoulder, effectively trapping someone Laf could only hear from His spot behind them. Laf stepped towards the scene and heard a voice over the surrounding noise. “Neither one of you are named George or Lafayette, correct?” 

Laf’s attention piqued higher at the mention of their names. The voice was doing weird things to his head. It was like hearing someone calling you home. The fear in it made him unusually angry. Before he had time to process those thoughts, the conversation he wasn’t yet a part of continued. 

The men he could see answered that they were indeed not George of Laf, but they would take _real_ good care of the unattended submissive. Laf didn’t like their tone, and he liked it even less when the two men were pressing the man in front of them up against the wall. In the struggle, one of the men elbowed the submissive, causing his nose to bleed. Not able to fight back, the submissive let out a sob. 

Laf had moved into action to confront the men the moment the ‘fight’ broke out, but the sob is what triggered something primal in his mind and threw the idea of a verbal altercation out the window. He broke the first guys nose easily, landing a strike before he could notice Laf’s involvement. The submissive pulled free of the second guy and seemed to instinctually move behind Laf. “We were just doing a scene, bro. No need to get involved,” the second guy tried to lie. 

Laf scowled at him. “With my date? Maybe you should find someone willing next time. Or can you not? I’m guessing that’s why you were trying to pick on John.” Laf was flying by the seat of his pants. With how attached he was to the boy cowering behind him already, he hoped that he was John, but he hadn’t really had a chance to check in the heat of the moment. 

The guy, spurred by Laf’s words took a shaky swing at him. Laf caught his punch and used the momentum to swing him hard against the back wall. He hit headfirst and crumpled into a pile. As Laf was turning to check if the submissive was still behind him, the first guy flew at him with a vengeance and landed a punch to the face. Laf staggered back but didn’t go down completely. The guy ran forward to attack him again, but before he could get close enough, he was clotheslined by someone solid. 

Laf looked through the blood and saw George standing above the man with two younger men almost hidden behind them. One was holding a napkin to his nose and looking at Laf in awe. The other was looking between George and Laf waiting to see what would happen next. George crouched above the man on the ground with an expression of pure poison. “If you ever touch one of my boys again, you will be a lot worse off than this. Is that clear?” The man on the ground shook his head. George gathered Laf into his arms. “I see you found John. Let’s get home so we can get cleaned up and all sit down and talk.” 

\----------

Laf was worried that things were going to be weird, and the first month proved him right. There were many times that the dynamic was so fluid that it caused problems. Alex was mouthy and didn’t trust easily. The first few scenes, he and Laf butted heads multiple times with one particularly venomous, “I will **never** listen to you because you aren’t a real dom,” getting thrown out before Laf called red and George made them all sit down to have a heart to heart at the table. 

When everyone including John was settled, George started. “You won’t speak unless I say so as the head of this household. Is that clear?” Three nods moved the conversation along. “Good. Now what just happened is something that should absolutely never happen when we are all playing together. Alexander, I am disappointed that you let it go that far. You’re going to explain yourself then when we are done tonight, you will be punished. You may speak.” 

When Laf turned to look at Alex, he was expecting anger. He was expecting something cold, something like hatred. What he wasn’t expecting was tears. He reached instinctually to comfort Alex, but was stopped by George. 

Alex choked a little before pulling himself together and explaining. “I know it’s going to be hard to believe, but I really didn’t mean to say that. Sometimes, in the heat of the moment, my brain moves faster than my filter and I say things that I haven’t even thought about or don’t really mean. That was horrible of me to say. Lafayette, I am so sorry. If I have to be honest, I feel like I constantly have to compete against you because you’ve been here longer and George trusts you more, and that I have to prove that I’m enough even though I’m not dominant, I can be what George needs, like you. And my competitive side brought such a mean phrase out that I don’t actually believe. I understand if you all don’t want me anymore. I’m… not a very good sub. I’m overly mouthy and rude.” 

His words poured out like a flood as his eyes were trained on the table and there were tears hitting the wood there. Laf knew that Alex had a rough day at the publisher’s office. Their scene had been to help him shut off his mind, but apparently his competitive side just fueled a fire that caused him to snap. George nodded to Laf, and Laf grabbed Alex’s hand. “I’m sorry if I intimidate you in the bedroom. I forgive you for what you said, and I promise that one strike against you, one misstep, isn’t enough to get you ‘thrown’ out of our little family. We adore you and usually we enjoy how mouthy you are. This is just a special circumstance.” 

George nodded curtly and brought the conversation around to their dynamic, telling Alex that he would be needed in the bedroom immediately following for punishment. He explained that things like this were good chances to grow as a group, and that bumps in the road would only make them stronger as they went along if they just took the time to talk about what went wrong and fix it. 

“Alex, if you don’t like taking directions from Laf as a Dom, you only had to tell me. We all have to trust one another to be honest with our opinions.” Alex look chastised, but calmer knowing that he wasn’t going to be kicked out, even with whatever punishment was waiting for him. “Here’s what we are going to do. I am going to consider myself in charge of all three of you. Alex and Laf, you are my submissives. Alex, you only have to listen to me. Anytime you and Laf play, I will be in charge. John, you want to be primarily Laf’s submissive, correct? You have permission. Speak up, please.” 

John shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He knew the conversation was necessary, but still didn’t particularly want to have it. “I’m very attached to Marquis, yes, Sir. I am loyal to you as well though.” The last bit was added hastily and was cut off with a wave of George’s hand. 

George patted his head. “I’m not doubting your affection John. Thank you for your honesty. You will play primarily with Laf then except for on days when he’s feeling particularly submissive in which case you will all fall back to my responsibility. Does anyone have any objections or suggestions?” Everyone at the table agreed. 

Alex went with George for punishment, while Laf and John decided to go to bed. With the new dynamics discussed, everything else quickly clicked into place. After months of smooth sailing, George asked John and Alex to move in. With the ‘honeymoon’ period over, the group was finally complete. 

\----------

Most people in society collared their partner when they were claimed. George’s little family had never been one to do things the easy or conventional way though, so they all had different signs of linkage. 

George and Laf shared a tattoo because Laf couldn’t wear jewelry as a model. Of course, they had a traditional collar and bracelet set that was obsidian for him to wear at home if he was feeling particularly submissive, but most of the time, they were linked by the tattoo. 

Alexander had also opted out of a permanent collar. They had tried it for a week, and at the last moment, Alexander had finally told George that because it was tight on his neck it might have been causing him to have more frequent anxiety attacks. He elaborated that these particular attacks didn’t happen in the bedroom, but he couldn’t help but hyper focus on the collar when he was out in public. He had come up with an alternate plan. He and George went to a piercing parlor at the soonest convenience so that Alex could get his nipples pierced. As soon as they healed correctly, he put in emerald bars, to match the color of his bedroom collar, which had an emerald chain that hung between them. George’s matching piece was an emerald pocket watch on a chain that he always carried with him and kept on display.

John had no trepidation wearing a collar twenty four seven, so George bought him one that was scarlet and obsidian. The scarlet matched a bracelet that George always wore, and the obsidian represented his primary loyalty to Lafayette. George had left what Laf and John wanted to do up to them. 

Lafayette had purchased locking wrist bands for John. They were a constant reminder of him whenever John was working on a new piece of art. Laf wore the key around his neck except when he was working. John had nervously presented an alternate idea as well because of Laf sometimes having to leave the key at home for work. He had drawn an elaborate anatomically correct heart shaped lock with a key hole and a matching key. John had two full sleeves of his own designs tattooed on his arms, so he was afraid that the idea didn’t seem special enough, but he presented his drawings as a tattoo idea for them anyway. John wanted to get the lock right over where his heart was and suggested Laf get the key behind his ear. Laf jumped at the idea and within a week, both of them came home freshly inked. 

With that, their unique bonds were all solidified in ways that were just as unique. 


	2. Better Together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boys have always struggled with what to get George for his birthday. This year they think they've hit the nail on the head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is 7,000 words of sin and I'm absolutely not sorry.

George had managed to sneak out of the dogpile without being noticed that morning. He got a shower, made some coffee, and left a note to his boys that said he’d be home at 7 sharp. Added as an afterthought that they should be ready for dinner at a nice restaurant. On his commute to work, he sent them individually a list of chores that they would need to get done in his absence. Mostly, he followed his normal everyday routine. The only reason that today seemed any different was that it was his birthday. 

Every year, his boys would try to make a production out of the day: they had tried parties, surprising him at work, and elaborate gifts. And every year, he would be grateful for the fact that they cared about him but would remind them at the end of the night that he wasn’t a ‘big gestures’ kind of guy. Because they were all still asleep when he woke up, he hoped that this would be the year that he had finally gotten his message across. 

His secretary, Martha, greeted him with a casual, “Good morning and happy birthday, Mr. Washington! Your second coffee is already on your desk as well as a copy of today’s meeting schedule and a package that was on your desk when I got here this morning. Luckily, it’s a pretty light day, so we should be set to leave on time. I would hate for you to miss out on celebrating with your boys.” 

Martha always had held a soft spot for George’s family. Laf had charmed her right away, Alexander was a constant flirt, and she loved how cute John always was when he came into the office. “Hopefully they will be on their best behavior today. You remember the catastrophe that was last year’s birthday surprise.” She followed him into the office holding a stack of papers, presumably needing his signature. 

She giggled. “Oh, but Sir, you have to admit that Alex jumping out of the cake was clever. And they did stay behind to help clean up.” George cringed at the memory of his office being covered in frosting. They hadn’t done any food play since. 

Martha perched on the edge of the desk, calmly waiting as George read through the documents in front of him and signing where necessary. “They really are good boys, Sir. You were blessed to find one good one, much less three that love you as much as they do. Perhaps you should indulge them. I think they’re just excited to get to celebrate you.” 

He hummed in agreement. “I know, Martha, I know. They are good boys, but they have to remember that I know what’s best for me, and that is a quiet night out with my good boys. I have 7:30 reservations at that place in town that I love so much. Then we can go home and celebrate there.” 

Martha took the papers George handed to her. “Well, whatever you like, Sir. It is your day. Is there anything I could get for you before I sit back down?” 

“Just do your best like you always do, and it will be a good day for me. Thank you, Martha.” With that, she nodded and exited his office to go back to her desk, leaving him to go over the schedule and take a closer look at the mysterious package on his desk. The schedule had to come first; unfortunately, work always came before play for George. By the time he had read through the summaries of the meetings, about an hour had passed. His phone dinged, pulling him away from work. Alex had sent him his daily breakfast messages to prove that he was eating. That was one of his permanent rules: if Alex wasn’t with him, he needed photo confirmation that he was remembering to eat on the schedule George had set up for him unless he had express permission to deviate. This morning’s photo showed Laf cutting up fruit and feeding it to John while Alex took a bite of Cinnamon Toast Crunch. The caption was “Between the three of us, our breakfast is balanced. (PS we all say happy birthday)!!!” 

The pictures he got from his boys throughout the day were some of his favorite things. They each had a specific time that they would text him, usually having to do with one of their rules. It was fun for him to get to see snapshots of their day while he was away, and made him feel like he wasn’t missing out on as much by having the only really ‘rigid’ job in the family. He shot back a quick reply. “Good boys! Don’t forget chores today. There won’t be time tonight.” 

George slid his phone into his pocket and threw away his now empty coffee cup. Martha rushed in before he could stand to go to his first meeting of the day. “Sir, no need to get up. The meeting got moved to be in your office for some reason. They just called to say they were on the way.” 

“Interesting. This meeting is that small?” George had a spacious office, but only enough seating for around 10 including himself between the two couches, two armchairs, and his desk chair. 

“Yes, Sir. All of your meetings today have 5 people or less. Most are just different level check-ins. The first is your floor workers, the next is your managers, after is the district managers, and the last one of the day is the board. You wanted to schedule them to make sure nothing was slipping through the cracks from top to bottom. You will be back to back until lunch, then back to back until 6. Out the door by 6:30 and home by 7. Is everything correct?” Martha rattled off the meetings and times like it was nothing to keep track of. George considered giving her a bonus and wrote it down on a sticky note so he wouldn’t forget. 

“Thank you, Martha. Just send them in when they get here. Oh, and if you would, take their drink orders and go get them once we get settled. Just put it on my card.” She smiled and waved on the way out again. Before she got all the way out the door though, she peeked back in. 

“By the way, Sir,” she asked only hesitating a little, “What was in that package from earlier?” 

George had honestly forgotten about the package that was now leaned up against his side of the desk on the floor. He shrugged at Martha. “Not sure yet. I’ll open it at lunch, and you’ll be the first to know.” With another smile, she was out the door just in time to show the first meeting group into his office. 

By the time lunch rolled around, George had already felt the long day wearing on him. The morning meetings had been very beneficial, but taxing. He could tell where the problem areas were already, had a plan to fix them, and was ready to put them in motion, but he would have to get it approved by the board first. Office politics had never been his favorite thing, but he knew how to play the game if necessary. Martha stepped in to tell him that she was holding his calls for the next hour and locking his door. She knew as well as he did that the higher up the business ladder you looked, the harder people were to satisfy and that he would need a break before the afternoon meetings. 

With the door shut and locked, George pulled out his lunch and phone. Deciding to eat first so he would have plenty of time to relax, he opened up his lunch box. There was a happy birthday doodle on a sticky note stuck to the outside of his bento box. It looked like one of Alex’s doodles, rough lines and in traditional ink from a quill pen instead of a ball pen. Opening it further, he could see that John had helped Laf prepare the food the night before. His wrap and sides were arranged to look like a turtle, and for desert there was a mini cake that you could just make out said “Happy Birthday.” The fact that everything looked good and _tasted_ good as well was what tipped him off that Laf had probably taken the lead with the ingredients. When his boy’s combined their talents, they could do anything. 

After he had finished his food, he picked up his phone and looked at the messages from his boys. Apparently, John was having a ‘little’ day. He had his, Alex, and Laf’s hair in pigtail buns on the top of their head at the coloring station in his room. “Taking a chore break to color! Wish you were here, Pappy. (PS Happy Birthday)!!!” 

The next picture was from Laf. It was midmorning and he had managed to get them all to the gym. Alex was looking miserable on an elliptical beside where John was on the treadmill with a matching expression. Laf had managed to take a selfie and catch them in the mirror behind where he was bench pressing. The caption on that one was, “The heathens didn’t particularly want to come today but I told them what you tell me, ‘If you won’t come to the gym, you won’t cum at all.’ (PS HAPPY BIRTHDAY)!!!!)” George couldn’t help but snort. They had a house rule that you had to do at least an hour of physical activity a day. Laf loved the rule, but the other two were common offenders of breaking it. 

Before George could respond to either message, he got another picture from Laf. It was of three familiar naked torsos pressed together and accented by steam from the shower. The caption on that one was, “Permission to play, Sir?” 

George smirked at his phone. This was one of his favorite parts of being the head of household. They could tease each other all they wanted, but they weren’t allowed to actually play unless he gave them permission. He quickly typed back, “You can play. Everyone get’s a turn. No one is allowed to cum. :)” 

Almost immediately, he received a crying emoji from Alexander. He hadn’t been allowed any release in two days for acting like a brat in public then getting caught trying to convince John to play without permission, so he wasn’t going to be able to play very long. George sent him back a kissy face emoji. 

Within five minutes, he received a video message. What a sight it was. Alex was videoing, with the camera facing away from him pointed down his body where Laf was licking slowly up and down his dick, stopping when he got to the top every time to run his tongue over the head and suck a tiny bit. Between Laf’s legs, George could just barely see John, kissing and sucking on Laf’s dick while working his fingers into Laf’s opening and using his other hand to touch himself. There was a chorus of moans and tongues that was like music to George’s ears. The video ended when Laf pulled off of Alex with a popping noise and a sob from Alex, pushed his hips up so that John couldn’t play anymore, and winked directly into the camera. 

George groaned low in his throat. He would have given anything to just have been able to go home, and tell his boys exactly how good they were and give them what they actually needed. But instead, he was trapped in his office so he needed to cool down and refocus on something other than his burning desire to go home and fuck his boys silly. He sent them a quick message to say he was proud of them for following directions and that they were absolutely stunning when they played so well together. He was about to go check his social media when he remembered the package at his feet. 

George picked it up and turned it over in his hands. Whatever it was, it was wrapped up in traditional brown paper with a twine ribbon wrapped around it in a bow. On the front in sprawling cursive was the phrase, “Brown paper packages, tied up with string…” and George couldn’t help but finish the tune in his head. With deft fingers, he undid the ribbon and carefully unwrapped the package. Inside was a faux leather bound book about the size of a traditional yearbook. The pages it contained were visibly thicker, looking more like a heavy parchment as opposed to a normal books pages. Curious, George flipped open the cover. The first page simply said, “Not to be opened in public.” 

George paused at that, still not understanding what the book could possibly contain that it couldn’t be opened in public. He flipped to the next page which turned out to be the title page. In some type of big, looping calligraphy, the title read, “George’s Boys” and had different sex toys worked into the word art and designs so subtly that you wouldn’t notice them unless you were staring at the page for as long as George was. In the bottom of the word art, almost imperceptible was the artist’s signature, “JL”. 

George finally realized that the sprawling cursive on the front belonged to Alexander, the paper had been Laf’s favorite last Christmas, and the only artist that he knew that could draw as well as the title was his little John. The boys had managed to sneak a gift into his office somehow without him noticing. He shook his head fondly and went back to the book, flipping through the pages. The contents were beautiful. John had sketched and painted representations of some of their favorite scenes from throughout the year. There was a particularly stunning black and red water color of the first time Laf had been flogged to the point that the skin broke and a counter image done in pinks and reds of the aftercare that followed. 

In between the sketches were professional boudoir photos of Laf done up in bondage and more traditional undergarments and printed in black and white. One of George’s favorites from the photos was Laf on his shoulders with his legs cocked in the air wearing sailor shorts and a crop top in traditional pin-up girl fashion. George made a mental note to ask if they could reprint that one so he could get it framed and maybe take Alex and John to get different shots done as well. 

In between the sketches and photographs were paragraphs written in Alex’s handwriting. He had either narrated the scene from John’s sketches, written an erotic story to go along with Laf’s pictures, or taken note of what each boy found the hottest about George. There were too many for George to read in the short amount of time left on his lunch break, so he quickly flipped to the last page. To conclude the book, there was a note from Alex, signed by each in their respective signatures and collar colors. The note read, “Sir, for your birthday this year, we wanted to do something special, but understated. (Surprise, we actually do occasionally listen to you!) We thought that you might want something discrete that you could keep in your office that would remind you of what’s waiting for you when you come home. Happy birthday! We love you! Your Good Boys…” Underneath, signed in green was “Alexander Hamilton” where the ‘o’ in his last name was a heart. To the right of Alex’s signature, Laf had signed his full name in black sparkling gel pen. Underneath Laf’s name, John had signed ‘little john laurens’ in all lower case block print. 

George cleared off a space in the middle of his favorite book shelf where he could display the book. He didn’t realize he was crying until a tear hit his hand as he placed the book on the shelf. He took a quick selfie with the book on the shelf and sent it to all three of his boys separately. He commended John on his artistic abilities, told Laf that he had the body of an Adonis and was glad he was his, and waxed poetic about how Alex’s words as always would keep him pleased for a long time to come. They all responded, just as his lunch break was ending with messages made entirely of emojis, hopes that his day would go by quickly, and that they couldn’t wait for him to be home. 

Right as Martha was unlocking the door to let his next meeting in, Alex sent a picture of Laf in the nude making something on the stove. “Lunch is running a little late, but I promise we aren’t too behind schedule.” George sent a thumbs up emoji and a kissy face and put away his phone. Somehow, his boys had managed to rejuvenate him, and he was ready to get through with these next few meetings. 

Martha sent him a private message on his tablet about halfway through the second meeting. “Need a pick me up? You are looking a little bored.” 

He responded that another coffee would be nice, and within 30 minutes she poked her head in with the idea for a five minute break and everyone’s favorite coffee. While the district managers mingled in his office, Martha pulled him aside. “So, I’m dying of anticipation, what was in the package?” 

George grinned and pointed to the book on the shelf. “The boys managed to sneak a gift in here last night somehow. It’s a beautiful collection of their talents. Much better than cake all over the office. I’ll have to think of a good way to say thank you.” 

Martha’s eyes sparkled with mischief that matched the grin on her face. “What if you surprised them by coming home early? You’d have a little time to take care of things before heading out towards your reservation that way.” 

George frowned a little. “I don’t know if I could rush the board meeting. They have to vote to make sure we can start making these changes…” She held out a spreadsheet with the board’s seal on it. George looked from the paper in her hands back to her face a few times. 

“It’s called ‘email’ and ‘electronic voting’, George. Consider it my birthday present to you. You should be able to leave by 4:00 then,” George took the papers and kissed Martha’s hand. She was definitely getting a bonus as soon as possible. He quickly called the meeting back to order and got back to business so that he would be good to leave. The rest of the meeting went off without a hitch. The last person left his office at 3:55, and he let out a breath of relief at being done. 

He checked his phone for the first time since lunch. Alex sent him a picture of John napping in Laf’s lap around 2. Laf sent a video of a newly cleaned kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom at 3:30. John sent a picture of Alex running from the dog’s caught mid laugh in the camera as he tried to feed them without them slobbering all over him. They had four dogs who, as most of them were mixed breed Great Dane and other, were almost as big as Alex and John and much faster. The next picture that came through was of Alex at the bottom of a dogpile with a caption that read, “Chores done but now somebody needs another shower.” 

The boys weren’t expecting a response from him yet, so he chose to write the check for Martha and leave it on his desk where she would find it before she left, took his time driving to the local vineyard and selected his favorite red for the evening, and then enjoyed the the drive through the countryside home. 

Their driveway itself was a half mile long, winding through the trees and then looping back to their house. George had designed it and had it built especially for them. It was three floors if you included the finished basement. The basement was their group playroom, the main floor is where they entertained and had the guest rooms, and then the second floor was their floor. Each had their own bedroom. George’s was the center of the floor. It connected to the three others through his sitting area. Alex’s was to the right connected to his own private office. Laf’s was directly behind George’s with a mini playroom connecting his to John’s on the left. John’s room connected to George’s and a private studio for his art. Each had their own closet and bathroom designed for their specifications and needs. George loved their home and loved coming home to happy boys. 

As he pulled up the drive, the dogs ran to greet him. It was around 6, so the boys should have been finished with their work and started getting ready for their night out. He got out of the car gently with his wine in hand. The dogs rushed at him, but it only took one command and a look to get them all sat down and well behaved. He tossed them some treats off the porch then made his way in the door. Someone was playing jazz hits through the speakers all over the house. The downstairs seemed relatively empty. George kicked his shoes off at the door and hung up his suit jacket before he made his way into the kitchen to chill the wine. John was perched on one of the seats at the island sketching something into his sketchbook and it took him a moment to register George. 

When he did, his eyes got as wide as saucers and a grin broke out across his face. “Pappy, you’re early!” 

John never yelled or raised his voice much at all unless he was at a rally or protest. They sometimes had trouble with him getting into fights he couldn’t win and refusing to seek help because of his quiet nature at home, but on days like this, George appreciated the relative calm of John’s embrace before he knew Laf and Alex would be a whirlwind. “How was your day today, little John?” 

“Well, we got everything done pretty early. I colored you a picture in my free time. Look!” he held up the picture he had been working on. It was a really elaborate family picture that he had sketched with the house in the background. When he said colored, George knew he meant that he had done the shading and light vignette of colors. They had learned early on that John had days where he felt little, but not completely. He wanted to color but on his terms like the sketch. He would throw tantrums if he didn’t have a nap. He and Laf mostly worked through it in aspects of their relationship where Laf was his primary caregiver, but because George was head of the household, he also got to be a caregiver for John on certain days so he knew of some of the intricacies. 

“That’s beautiful. Do you want to pin it to the board in my room or to the fridge?” George asked as John came out from behind the counter. He was dressed, but nothing had been put on him completely. His dress slacks were on with his belt, but his shirt was untucked and rolled up to the elbows haphazardly, he had on two different dress socks, and his bowtie wasn’t clipped correctly on his collar so it hung crooked. George sighed. “Wait, come here Jacky. Who dressed you and stopped halfway?” 

George had caught John’s arm even with him being all wiggly. “Pappy, it’s too tight I don’t wanna wear it like that. Marquis dressed me, but I snuck down here and made it more comfortable.” George couldn’t help but smile at the titles. John’s accent was strong on a good day, so the words ‘Pappy’ and ‘Marquis’ sounded more like ‘pAP-py’ and ‘mark-KEY’. Sometimes, if it was just the two of them, it even managed to draw out George’s accent in response. 

“Now now. Jacky, you’re gonna be a good boy for Pappy’s birthday right?” John nodded. “Alright then hold still and let’s finish getting you back to ready.” George tucked in his shirt, buttoned the vest, situated his collar and bow the right way, and rerolled his sleeves so that they looked messy on purpose and not just messy. John kissed his nose when it was all done and basically pulled him up the stairs. 

“Alex! Marquis! Look who I found!” John called out when they walked into George’s bedroom as he let go of his hand and ran to the art board to pin up his newest sketch. Alex came out of his room, tightening his bowtie collar and grumbling, “I swear, John, if you let the dogs in the house after I just got clean…” His grumbling trailed off when his eyes met George’s. “SIR! Happy Birthday!” He ran and flung himself into George’s arms, trusting without fail that George could and would catch him without falling. 

Alex had on a nice light green dress shirt with a black jacket and dark designer jeans. It was almost impossible to get him out in dress pants, but George was just happy to be in the moment so he let it slide. “One day, I’m not going to be able to catch you baby girl. Then where will we be?”

Alex giggled at the pet name and whispered, “Probably the floor, Sir.” George had just sat Alex down when Laf emerged from his room fastening his earrings and humming to the jazz coming out of the speakers. He was immaculately dressed in a full suit, vest, dress shirt, and tie attached to his collar. He also took a moment to notice George, but when he did, he walked over to George and dropped to one knee in front of him. Taking his hand and bringing it to his lips, Laf simply stated, “Welcome home, Your Excellency.” 

George pulled him to his feet and kissed him soundly on the lips. “You’re wearing your collar tonight, baby boy?” Laf blushed when George tugged gently on the collar and his breath hitched. When George met his eyes again, he basically whispered, “Yes, Sir. Tonight, we’re all yours.” 

George could have moaned at the submission apparent in Laf’s tone, but he masked it into a convincing cough to clear his throat. It wasn’t often that all of his boys were feeling submissive, and he was almost convinced that he would be fine if they skipped dinner to revel in the moment. He knew however that the mood would last, so instead he went on with his plan for the evening. “Are my boys all ready for the night other than shoes?” There were three quick nods. “Alright then, Alexander and Lafayette, go get four glasses of the red that’s in the wine freezer and bring them up here. Jacky, on your knees on your pillow while I change.” 

His boys moved quickly and effectively, although George thought he heard Alex say to Laf, “If he had been a moment sooner, he would have seen the surprise.” George pondered on what the surprise might be as he switched into a different suit for dinner, putting on his leather bracelets to match his men, and took his wine glass from Alex when he presented it. 

The one thing he noticed when they were leaving and in the car was how fidgety his boys were. Every bump seemed to make them shift uncomfortably. When they got to the restaurant, George and Laf sat at the chairs level with the table, and as was customary Alex and John took their respective places in lounging chairs at the feet of their doms. Alex immediately leaned his head against George’s thigh. He was flushed, and let out a slight whimper every time he shifted to take a bite of food George offered him. John was having a similar reaction to Alex’s when Laf fed him and even Laf seemed affected. “Boys, are you sure you’re quite alright?” 

The two on the floor nodded as best they could, while Laf assured him they were all fine, just excited to be out celebrating with him. George nodded, although he didn’t quite believe them. The conversation flowed smoothly, minor hiccups when one of the boys would almost… moan from time to time. The drive home was much the same: banter in the car but with an undercurrent of sexual tension that George couldn’t quite figure out. By the time they walked in the door, George had had it with the secrets. “Alright, knees, everyone.” 

He took of all of their suit jackets and hung them on the rack, then took off all their shoes. “Now, someone is going to tell me what’s going on, or everyone is going to their _own_ bed tonight.” 

John whimpered at the tone of his words. John was always the first to cave, but Alex shot him a look that could kill that kept him from opening his mouth. Laf cleared his throat and kept his eye trained to the floor. “We have a surprise for you, Your Excellency, that may have gotten out of hand. If it would please you, it’s a surprise better suited for the bedroom.” 

George noticed the bulge evident in each of their pants and could feel a matching one in his. The bedroom did seem like the next logical step. “Very well. Everyone upstairs; strip to your underwear, knees on your pillows, hands on your heads. I’ll be up in a moment.” 

The boys practically sprinted over each other on the stairs. George went to the kitchen and made sure that there was fruit cut up and little water bottles in the fridge for when they were done playing for the night. He let himself get lost in thought about what might be waiting for him upstairs while waiting for an adequate amount of time to pass before he went up there. He knew their routine. Alex and Laf would be getting out any toys and lube required for the scene as well as warm towels and washcloths set to the side for after. Laf would strip John, then himself. Alex would strip down as well. They’d all go kneel on their pillows in whatever they were wearing underneath their suits. 

This train of thought made George pause. He didn’t remember feeling boxers when he tucked John’s shirt in earlier. As a matter of fact, he didn’t remember feeling a waistband at all. George thought he might know what the surprise was. He figured that enough time had passed, and he rushed upstairs. 

His boys were a masterpiece. George had been right about the undergarments being part of the surprise, but he was still blown away by the magnitude. His eyes fell on Alex first. He was kneeling in a pair of emerald green lace boyshorts that left nothing to the imagination. The lace tapered off into satin ribbon that wrapped around his thighs and presumably tied in the back. His nipple rings sparkled in the dim light, the chain moving slightly with the rise and fall of his chest. Next he took in Lafayette. His head was held high, collar on full display. Black leather straps wrapped around his midsection, bisecting his abs, and connecting to a leather and black lace pair of boyshorts. The leather straps then continued down to his knees. Finally, his eyes fell on John who was wrapped prettily in red satin from his midsection down his thighs. His was not attached to boyshorts, but tied in a bow around the base of his penis in what was probably functioning as a makeshift cock ring. “Oh, _boys_ ,” George murmured under his breath. 

Having seen the front, George stepped around to the back to admire the view from there. At his command, “Hands on the floor,” the boys moved in practiced unison to their hands and knees. That’s when George noticed part two of the surprise. It wasn’t a wonder that his boys had been so squirmy at dinner. Alex and Laf’s underwear was backless, and John’s wasn’t even technically underwear, so George could easily see the gemstone base of anal plugs. They had even tried to match their colors: John’s was pink, Laf’s was purple, and Alex’s was a greenish yellow. George gently pressed against the one in Alex causing him to let out a chocked sob and the others to shiver. George could only imagine how Alex must have felt after not being allowed to cum for two days and then having a plug pressed up against his prostate for their whole dinner. 

“You all are absolutely stunning. Filthy, but gorgeous. Wrapped up as gifts to me?” George talked without expecting an answer. They had played together enough that his boys knew the difference between a rhetorical question and one that required an answer. “What should I do with you.” 

George’s eyes landed in the two cock rings that were sitting out. Simple, but effective in making the boys last longer and making their orgasms feel different, the cock rings were usually only used when the boys wanted to be overwhelmed. George picked them up and walked over to Alex and Laf. “Up boys. No sense in getting started without these on.” They both whimpered when George pulled their erections free from the hole in their boy shorts and slid the rings snug against the base of their cocks. Once they were ready, George took a seat in the large armchair across from the bed. “I think I want a show tonight, boys. Alex, on my lap. Laf, take John to the bed please.”

They moved with grace, Alex perching on George’s lap as Laf carried John to the bed. George settled Alex so that he was straddling his thigh, facing him. He moaned, loud and long as the plug bounced up into him and his dick brushed against George’s pants leg. “You can rut all you want, baby girl, but you aren’t allowed to cum until I’m fully seated inside of you. Clear?” Alex whimpered out a high pitched, “Yes, Sir,” as George shifted his leg to make Alex move against him. He chuckled darkly at the reaction. He wasn’t a sadist, but he found that his favorite expressions were when his boys were so blissed out that it bordered on painful, and he made it his goal to get them to that state every time. 

“Baby boy, you’re not allowed to cum until Jacky has come twice. Jacky, you are allowed to cum whenever you’re ready,” George watched them rolling around on the bed as they listened to his voice. John was seated on top of Laf, kissing him passionately to the point that George almost missed that Laf was trying to say, “Yes, Your Excellency,” between kisses. 

George loved watching Laf at work, and George knew that Laf enjoyed putting on a show especially if it made someone else feel good. He pulled John’s hair roughly, making the smaller boy mewl and grind down into his lap. With an adept mouth, Laf peppered John’s skin with claiming marks: teeth meeting flesh then being soothed by a tongue. John submitted beautifully, head held back even when Laf’s hand moved from his hair down to cup and squeeze his ass. “Tug on his collar with your teeth,” George instructed. 

Laf complied immediately, baring his teeth against the collar and pulling while snaking a hand between the two of them to untie John’s makeshift cock ring. With a skillful hand on his dick and the fact that Laf was pushing the plug in circles against his prostate, John came quickly. His orgasm was loud and messy, but over the years they had learned that he could have multiple orgasms, and they all knew that this was just a warmup. George was still bouncing his knee, causing Alex to squirm and writhe on his leg, wanting to cum like John but unable to because of the ring and lack of permission. “Sir,” he whimpered into George’s ear. He was not quite to desperate, but George could tell he was at least getting closer. “Not now, Alexander. Baby boy, put Jacky on his hands and knees facing us. I want to see you fuck him and him cum again, untouched.” 

Laf began rearranging John in a pleasing manner to George. John was whispering a litany of, “I can’t, I can’t,” to Laf who was rubbing comforting circles around his tailbone and promising him that they all knew he could. Slowly, Laf slid the plug out of John and sat it to the side. He lubed up his own dick and pressed against John’s entrance. John hissed out a breath when Laf pushed in slowly. George continued driving Alex crazy and directing from the sideline. “Relax, Jacky. Let Laf do the work.” 

There were tears gathering in the corners of both John and Akex’s eyes. George quietly asked Alex for a color and got a small answer of green. Laf had bottomed out in John who let out a sob as his abused prostate made his whole body shake. “Lafayette, did you make sure those were god tears?” George picked Alex up, sitting him on the edge of the bed. He was straining uncomfortably against his suit and decided to strip piece by piece while he listened for an answer. 

“Yes, Your Excel… Your Excellency. He called green; he just cries when he starts to get over sensitive.” Laf was obviously straining to keep control as he slowly rolled his hips into John. George sat down on the edge of the bed facing the headboard and the spectacle that was John and Laf. “Alex, come here and ride me facing John and Lafayette. Remember, you can’t come until you’ve worked me all the way into you.” 

Alex whimpered, but followed directions beautifully. He lowered himself onto George’s lap, crying out when George’s dick slid into him. George was a bit bigger than the plug and with no lube the slide in was rough. Alexander cried out, and George caught him by the collar causing him to lose air mid cry. “None of that, baby girl. You know you’re my little pain slut. I know you love every inch that sinks into you. Tell me how much you love it, Alexander.” 

When George let go of Alex’s collar, it was like opening a floodgate. “Please, Sir, please. I need you to slam into me! Fuck me so hard I can’t sit down without remembering this for a week. I love feeling you in me. Love the tear when you thrust up and use me like a whore.” George groaned at Alex’s words mixing with John’s in front of them. 

“Marquis, please, I need to… I can’t… please I need it,” he was sobbing and rocking back against Laf who was keeping the pace even and slow. The angle was perfect and he could tell that John was close by the incoherent begging. George breathed out his commands, “John, lean down and suck on the head of Alexander’s dick. Lafayette, faster for Jacky.” 

Laf was visably sweating with exertion from holding himself together, but sped up dutifully. His thrusts knocked John further onto Alex’s cock as he sucked and licked the head. Alex grinded down on George harshly with one last cry before he was coming into John’s mouth. The way Alex’s body shuddered sent George tumbling over the edge as well. He and Alex stayed connected for a moment, watching as John suddenly came for the second time that night with a string of curses. With a sigh of relief, Laf was the last one to release, the action visible in every muscle in his body clenching simultaneously. 

George kissed Alex’s forehead before pulling out and making his way over to the towels and washcloths they had set out before. He took one for himself and Alex and tossed one to Laf for him and John. They cleaned the others up and then each other, the room silent except for the sound of light kisses, reassurance, and praise. George went from boy to boy, massaging sore muscles and pulling off the leftover toys until everyone was clean and peaceful. He got up to go get their snacks, but John stopped him before he made it off the bed. “Can we all go, Pappy?” 

George looked at them all individually. They were obviously exhausted, but there was still a twinkle of mischief that was unexplained. George sighed good-naturedly and relented. “Of course. Everyone go get your robes.” 

There was a less hurried scamper to their various rooms to put on their robes and slippers. George was waiting for them at the door when they were finally decent, and they moved downstairs as a group. The kitchen was filled with a comfortable silence as they had their snack. When they were all done, John got up as if to load the dishwasher but instead disappeared into the dining room and came back with a small cake. The cake topper was a recreation of Alex exploding from icing while Laf, John, and George stood to the side covered in it. George couldn’t help but laugh when it was sat down in front of him with one candle lit while his boys sang happy birthday with sexed out voices. 

Instead of cutting the cake then, George had them cover it and put it in the fridge. “We will have it for breakfast tomorrow. I think my boys deserve a good night’s sleep.” 

His boys were practically falling over in their stools, sleep filling their eyes, and the only sound in the room a constant string of yawns. He kissed them all on the forehead and led them up the stairs. They all easily stripped out of their robes and fell into George’s bed, leaving room for him in between Alex and Laf. George gently undid Laf and Alex’s collars, setting them aside on the bedside table. He made sure that John’s was loose enough that he could sleep in it before canvassing the rooms to make sure that their phones were all plugged in and that everything was in order for bedtime. George shot Martha a quick reminder that he was taking a half day and wouldn’t see her until after lunch, before climbing into his spot on the bed. Alex immediately curled up almost on top of him on his right side, kissing his collarbone and wishing him a happy birthday before almost immediately falling asleep. Laf snuggled into his left side with John happily all the way on top of him, wrapped up in his arms and the blanket. They both whispered happy birthday as well before settling in to rest. George thought to himself as he drifted off surrounded by his boys, ‘ _Happy Birthday, indeed._ ’


	3. When You're Gone

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OOOOHHHHKAY so this one got out of hand. If you're not into a little tiny bit of angst on top of smut and character exploration in the realm of minor dd/lg and daddy kinks and BDSM, you probably wanna olly on out. Everyone else, enjoy these 18,500 words that I didn't mean to write :)

Sunday mornings had always been a house favorite. George never had to go into work and the boys were usually allowed to just relax at home after whatever scenes they had done the night before. They were Alex’s favorite in particular because it was one of the only times outside of their group scenes that their dynamic was out in full force. George was a proponent of letting yourself feel how you wanted to feel when you were at home and exploring your boundaries so that you don’t miss out on something you might really like, so many Sundays were spent with quiet reading on new aspects of kink, updating blogs to have dialogue with others of similar mindset, or just being able to cuddle with each other and relax. Normally, Sunday mornings were quiet and perfect. 

Usually, Sunday mornings didn’t begin with an elbow to the face and shouting. 

“OW, _Jesus Christ_! Lafayette what the fuck are you doing?” Alex moaned, pressing his probably bruised nose into George’s side. 

George grumbled from under a pillow, his voice a soothing rumble even when it was muffled, “Alex, language, please. Laf, sweetie, where are you going?” 

Alex felt George shift out from under the pillows pulling him and John close to his chest. John whimpered and made grabby hands as Laf left the room speaking rapid-fire French into his cellphone. George kissed his forehead and turned him back towards his chest. “Just give him a minute, Jacky. He’ll come tell us what’s up on his own time. Besides, the only ones that can break the ‘Do Not Disturb’ function on the phones before the alarm goes off is all of us and our respective bosses.” 

Alex felt like he had just drifted back off when Laf came in the room, off the phone finally, but so excited he hadn’t switched from French back to English, even as he flopped on top of George to kiss him fully on the mouth, ruffle John’s hair, and generally disrupt Alex’s idea of a quiet morning. 

George seemed amused at least. “What’s up, baby boy? You got everybody up before the alarm for something.” 

“Well, we definitely have something to discuss and it definitely cannot wait. That was a call from my agent. A model fell ill for fashion week. Like _**the**_ fashion week. And they want me to take his place!” Laf speaking with an air of nonchalance, but Alex knew that this was his dream to walk in a show as big as that. 

“Marquis, that’s amazing!” John smile could have lit up the whole neighborhood. Alexander always wondered how John had so much light in him that he could consistently be so genuinely happy for others. “When do we leave?” 

Lafayette rolled off of George to wrap himself around John. “Well, that’s the problem. I told them they’d have to give me a moment to consider going.” 

George and Alex looked at him, confusion evident on their features. Alex was the first to speak. “Are you fuc… I mean _freakin_ kidding me? This is your dream! Why would you say no?!” 

Laf pulled John a little closer, adopting what looked like a defensive stance even just laying down. “They told me I would fly out at 2pm today and that I had to come alone because there was limited housing for the models and we will be busy around the clock anyway. I haven’t been away for that long before, and I really don’t like to travel without John. We make decisions together as a group so I thought that I’d bring it to you all to help me figure out what to do.” 

Alex could not believe that Laf was just going to throw away this opportunity that had basically been spoon fed to him. This was everything he wanted on a platter and he was pushing it away for what? Time with them? Alex couldn’t comprehend that. You take what’s given to you and you run with it. He was about to say as much when George seemingly anticipated his response and shoved two fingers in his mouth, giving him a silencing look. 

He spoke for him instead. “That’s a big opportunity to pass up, baby boy. If you are worried about us, you know that we would be fine and would be happily watching from afar. I know a week seems like a long time. We could set up specific times to call home. You send me pictures all the time; we could do the same for you.” 

Laf still looked hesitant. He hadn’t lessened his tight grip around John even with George using the hand not in Alex’s mouth to rub comforting circles on the back of his neck. It wasn’t until John spoke up that Laf seemed to calm down. “Marquis, you are gonna look so good on that runway. I’m gonna record it on Pappy’s TV so I can paint whichever outfit you’re in that’s my favorite.” 

Laf looked at John with concern masking excitement. “You sure, Jacky?” 

John nodded and nuzzled into Laf’s side. “I can be a good boy for a week. Besides, you’ll call before bed every night, right?” 

Laf grinned into John’s hair. “You know I wouldn’t miss that for the world, babe.” 

John pulled him out of the bed suddenly. “Well, come on then! You have to call them back and pack! There’s so much to do!” 

Their room was a flurry of motion as everyone rushed to help get Laf ready to go. Alex and John were told to go read while Laf and George made plans in the kitchen once his very small bag had been packed. Alex happily complied while John seemed dejected at being shut out for even a small amount of time. Alex hadn’t barely sat down in his office with his favorite tea when he got a text to come downstairs from George. Sighing, he traipsed back to the kitchen. 

They perked up when he entered. “Good! Thank you for coming down so quickly. Laf was giving me a rundown of John’s current schedule. Obviously, he won’t be able to keep up with it this week so we revised it. John is now on the same schedule as you to an extent, unless there is an emergency. You’re going to be around him the most with me at work and Laf in Paris, so you’re going to have to watch for signs that John might be about to have a breakdown. He doesn’t do well with schedule changes. It’s up to us to make sure he stays ok with Laf gone.” 

Alex couldn’t figure out why this was such a big deal. He had lived with Laf years ago, and they had been fine on their own. Laf was an adult. Sure, he did some things differently like sleep with a shit ton of stuffed animals and acted immature, but he also made this crazy, amazing depraved looking art and had tattoos and piercings out the ass. He would be fine without having a scene for a week. Alex just nodded though, knowing that anything he said wouldn’t sway the other two men. George sighed, seemingly realizing that Alex was downplaying something he didn’t understand. “That’s all Alex. You can go back to reading, and we can talk later.” 

Alex relaxed into his tea and books, only stopping midday to give Laf a kiss on the cheek before he headed out. “You’re gonna knock them dead, stunner. See you when you get home!” Alex chirped. 

Laf chuckled and ruffled his hair. “Try not to get in trouble while I’m gone. Thanks for helping watch out for John.” 

Alex scoffed. “I am an _angel_ who never causes problems. It’ll be just like old times, just me and John alone in an albeit larger amount of space. Don’t worry so much.” 

Laf promised to call when he landed, and with one last goodbye and some whispered words to John, he was gone. George ushered them back inside and had them clean up lunch before breaking to take a nap. Alex had never had to take afternoon naps, but George gave him a look that basically dared him to say anything so he dutifully laid down. 

After a nap where the only one to actually sleep was John, George took them out to the park, to dinner, and then to see a movie that Alex had wanted to see. John was a little off throughout the evening but laughed along to the movie and was almost back to normal when they were enjoying their ice cream afterwards. By the time they made it home, it was around 10:30 and their Sunday had been a success in Alex’s eyes. 

“Pappy, so you think everything is ok? He really should have landed an hour ago, and he hasn’t called yet…” John had been obsessively checking his phone all day as if Laf would be able to just magically text him from the plane. 

“He promised you he would call every night before bed, didn’t he?” John nodded at George’s soothing words. “Let’s just give him a little bit more time then. I think you should sleep with me and Alex tonight, ok?” 

John hesitated. Alex knew that most Sunday nights John spent in his own bed with Laf or Laf’s bed, but even Alex knew that would be a bad idea for the night. Before John could answer, his phone was ringing. Giddy, John answered, “MARQUIS! Thank goodness you made it!” 

John listened to the reply as Alex and George observed. Alex found it remarkable how much calmer John was just from hearing Laf’s voice. After a moment of murmuring from the other end, John put his phone on speaker so Laf could talk to them all. 

“Am I on speaker? Ooh, yeah can tell just from the background noise. I made it to Paris just fine. The call is coming in late for y’all because there was this orientation thing that we have to be at in the morning so the men and women in my room all decided that we are gonna need some coffee to make it through the night and into the day tomorrow. I’m the only one who speaks fluent French, so I had to go help them, love their hearts. Anyway, our first run-through is at 7 which is about 3 hours from now. We will all go in for makeup and fitting at 6. I will call you on our dinner break which should be around lunchtime for you, OK?” George and Alex both said their goodnights, “Alright, Jacky, take me off speaker.” 

John carried the phone out of the room with him, listening and laughing along to whatever Laf was saying. George sent Alex off to get ready for bed, and when they both came out in pajamas after around half an hour had passed, motioned for him to climb up to his normal spot on the bed. “I’m going to peak in and see how John is doing.” George kept his footsteps soft so he wouldn’t startle John. 

Alex, always curious to the point it got him in trouble, decided to follow just as quietly. This earned him a disapproving look from George who was trying to gather up a now very asleep John in his arms. Alex grabbed the blanket and stuffed animal that George silently nodded to as well as John’s phone. George was already out of the room when Alex heard the phone make a noise. Raising it to his ear, he heard someone singing in French. “Hello?” Alex asked cautiously. 

The singing abruptly stopped. “Oh… hey Alex. John’s asleep right?” 

Lafayette sounded embarrassed. Alex hadn’t ever thought about the fact that he had no idea what Laf and John really did in their own dynamic, only the group one, and was all of the sudden full of questions. “Yeah, George carried him to his bed so he wouldn’t be in here alone. Do you sing to him every night?” 

“He sleeps better if there is some type of rhythmic noise that he can focus on,” it wasn’t actually an answer but it was as good as Alex was going to get because suddenly, George was pulling the phone out of his hands. 

“Hey baby boy. Yeah, Jacky went right to sleep. He will be fine. I know. Is this going to work for you? It’s like four in the morning there. No, the fact that it is ‘actually five’ doesn’t make it better. I know you can handle yourself. I will try not to worry, and I have your boy so you relax and have fun. We miss you, too. Goodnight, Laf.” Alex hated only being able to hear one side of the conversation, but also knew that it wasn’t his place to wonder what Laf was saying back to George. 

“Baby girl,” there was a hint of warning in George’s voice now that his full attention was on Alex that caused him to shiver. “You’re going to need to be _very_ good this week. John is going to need our full support.” 

Alex gave a little nod and held up the blanket and pillow like they were proof that he was on the same page. He knew that even with as balanced as the attention was in the group, some weeks one partner would need it more than others, and this was apparently John’s week. Alex couldn’t remember the last time they had all doted on John. 

Climbing into bed, George had Alex lay on one side of John so that he could lay on the other, making a John sandwich. John’s pajamas were not his own, and before he fell asleep even Alex felt a little homesick realizing that while it smelled like Lafayette, he was half a world away. 

The first day that they were alone together went well in Alex’s opinion. His outfit was not as well put together as it usually was, his bun seemed haphazard, and John was quieter than usual, but the chores got done, they made it to the gym, and both had breakfast and lunch as per usual. John spent more time retreating into his room than Alex remembered him doing since they had moved in, but Alex didn’t want to intrude and didn’t mind the space to get work done. About 30 minutes before George was due home, Alex looked up to find John in the doorway. “Marquis and I usually start dinner around this time if you want to help?” 

Without thinking about it and lost in his writing, Alex waved him off. “Nah, that’s y’all’s thing. I’m no good in the kitchen.” 

Alex could feel John hesitate in the doorway for a moment before the door closed again and he was left to his thoughts. Normally, Laf would ring the dinner bell early to let Alex know he had about 5 minutes before he needed to be ready at the door for George. When Alex looked down at the time, he realized that he was about an hour late for dinner. He sped downstairs to see John at work putting the dishes away as George washed them. “Good evening, Sir,” Alex tried to sneak in sheepishly. 

“Good evening, Alexander. John told me that you were hard at work, so we sat aside a plate for you. How is your new work coming along?” George asked conversationally. 

Alex launched into a synopsis of his new books. As he ate and talked, he thought about the fact that John must have been covering for him in order to not get him in trouble with George. It was really sweet of him; he’d have to thank him the next day. 

When the dishes were done, John didn’t spare a moment to talk, instead making a beeline to the entertainment room. “Where’s he off to in such a hurry?” Alex asked. 

George gave him a frown and avoided the question, “Did you interact with him at all today? He seems like he’s struggling.” 

“Sir, we did chores together, ate meals together, and even went to the gym. That’s what we usually do,” Alex’s brow furrowed. He didn’t understand why George seemed so concerned. Of course John seemed off; they had known that was going to happen from the moment Laf left. George kissed him on the forehead and sighed. He was still upset, but Alex figured it was more about not knowing what to do than at any particular person. 

“John ran off to the media room because they are showing footage of the runway tonight, and he wants to see if he can spot Laf. He told me that he had told you that over lunch,” George was ushering them in the direction of the room. Alex vaguely remembered John talking about that right after getting off the phone with Laf, but Alex had also been reading an article at the same time on his phone. 

They settled in on the couch around where John had spread out with blankets and pillows. He was pointing at the screen excitedly when they came in, more animated in that moment than Alex had seen him all day. “Look! He’s on next! They have model bios rotating and it said his would be next after the commercial!” 

George ruffled his hair before sitting down and pulling Alex onto his lap. Settling in, it didn’t take long for Laf’s bio to pop up on screen. He looked like a goddess in his portfolio photo. John was flailing and screaming like it was a celebrity, which Alex admitted he kind of was. When Laf strutted down the walk, John’s breath hitched. Alex couldn’t figure out why he was so rapt until the announcers pointed it out for him. 

_“Ah, you don’t see them come as pretty as this one anymore, Bob. The model on the runway now uses the stage name, Lafayette. He exudes power through his gaze but walks like he was trained to do it. The thing that sets him apart from the other members of the model community tonight is that he refused to take off that key on the chain around his neck and the designers, instead of kicking him out, fell in love with his passion. Turns out he’s a switch: Yes, they do exist. He mentioned to another model that he misses his little one which is why he wouldn’t be removing the key. He mentioned to another model that he was looking forward to getting back to his Dom and co-sub. We’ve never seen a poly-relationship quite like this one, Bob, which makes Lafayette the model of the hour. Join us later to see if we can get an interview with the mysterious switch.”_

Alex could see tears well up in John’s eyes that he quickly wiped away. He heard him whisper, almost in a trance, “He wore my key…” 

George encouraged Alex off of his lap so that they could both stand. “Jacky, I think Alex wants some hot chocolate. Would you like some as well?” George asked. Alex wouldn’t mind hot chocolate but was confused as to why George would use him as an excuse. John’s attention was still rapt on the television as other models with less interesting bios walked the catwalk. Finally, seeming to realize George had asked him a question, John shook his head. “No thanks, George. I think I might go to bed now.” 

George was obviously as caught off guard as Alex was by the use of his actual name. It had been ages since John had used anyone’s real name when they were at home. “Oh… Are you feeling alright, John? Want me to wake you up when Laf calls?” 

“I’ll wake up when my phone goes off. I’m fine,” he was putting up a front and was not fine, but Alex didn’t know a non-combative way to point that out. 

With that, John kissed them both on the cheek and went up to his bedroom. When George tried to sneak in later that night, he found that John had locked the door. “I’m not sure what’s gotten into him, baby girl. Tomorrow, you should keep a close eye on him.” Alex hummed a response into George’s chest and fell asleep. 

The next day was even quieter than the last. Alex still considered everything alright though, until the next day when everything decidedly went wrong. Alex was in his study working on his books. He was _this_ close to having the next chapter done, and had shut out the entire world. He almost didn’t notice John when he slipped in until he cleared his throat. “We should probably head to the gym so we can get back and shower before dinner.” 

Alex didn’t even look up from his notes and laptop. “Eh, we can just skip it today. They’ll never know the difference.” 

“I don’t want to get in trouble or stress anyone out…” John said obviously hesitant about breaking a rule. 

Alex rolled his eyes, “Oh, grow up. The rules are just there as guidelines to keep us happy and healthy; we can miss one and not tell anyone.” He didn’t realize his mistake until he turned around and made eye contact with John. 

John looked terrible, like a ghost of himself, but what shook Alex was the hurt in John’s eyes where tears were welling up. In the quietist voice Alex had ever heard, John whimpered, “I’ve tried. I’m trying. I _can’t_ …” and then he broke into sobs and ran from the room. 

Alex thought about what he aid and how it must have felt for John to hear those words: “Oh, grow up.” Ouch. Alex went into fixing mode, flying across George’s room to try to get in John’s. “John, I didn’t mean it! I’m sorry! Please don’t be upset!” Alex shouted when he couldn’t get the door to open. There were heavy sobs coming from inside but no response. Alex tried the door from Laf’s room into John’s but that door was also locked. He slumped against it, unsure what to do. He couldn’t get in to apologize, and he didn’t have a key. He tried banging on the door again to no avail before he went back to his office thinking maybe John just needed space. 

He thought that maybe things would blow over and be fine when he heard the door downstairs slam and a very angry George yelling, “Alexander Hamilton!” 

Alex had never run faster down the stairs. “George, I fucked up! I can’t get John out of his room! Thank God you’re home.” 

George’s face scrunched up at the use of his actual name then softened as he saw how panicked Alex was. “Alex, you’re in trouble. I think you know why. I need to go take care of John, but afterwards I want you in the playroom on your knees and ready for punishment. I picked up this book on the way home because I think part of your problem is that you don’t understand.” George handed Alex a book titled, “Understanding Your Middle: The Confusing World Between Submissive and Little,” before continuing, “To your office, baby girl. We will talk in an hour or so.” 

Alex followed him upstairs, but instead of going to his office, he sat on the pile of kneeling pillows outside the door to John’s room. George seemed ok with the change of location as he pulled out his keychain and used his emergency keys to get into John’s room. He left the door open slightly, probably knowing that Alex was going to eavesdrop anyway. Alex started reading, getting lost in the words on the page and coming from John’s room. 

“Oh, little one, what’s wrong?” George cooed. John’s only response was a whimper. There was a rustling noise that Alex assumed was George pulling John from a blanket cocoon onto his lap. “If you need to cry, cry. But you know I’m not leaving until we talk about what’s wrong.” 

It was another 10 minutes of George soothing John with coos and soft voices before John’s crying went from incoherent to actual thoughts and it was like a floodgate had opened and everything that had been on John’s mind came spilling out. “I _tried_ so hard to be big, Pappy. I wanted to be big and good so that you and Alex and Marquis wouldn’t have to worry about me. But I couldn’t. I made dinner and I followed the rules and I tried to be like Alex and be self-sufficient and play by myself, but it hurt and I’m so lonely and I am thinking such selfish thoughts. I want Marquis _home_ , but at the same time I want him to stay because the TV is saying such mean things about him for not bringing me with him or for having you there, and I want to prove them wrong. He shouldn’t need me or you there to validate him, and it’s selfish of me to want him home, but I miss him constantly and I can tell he’s tired and it’s draining to be perfection for that long. And then I went and made it worse,” his voice broke off in a sob as George shushed his tears and waited for him to continue. Alex hadn’t realized John knew about the broadcasts that were calling Laf a bad Dom for ‘abandoning’ his sub for glory or a bad Sub for ‘overshadowing’ his Dom. Apparently those had been heavy on his mind. And Alexander hadn’t even thought to ask how John was feeling, just assuming he already knew. 

Finally John continued, “I made it worse. I called him because Alex said that we could break the rules and not go to the gym. Said that the rules were just suggestions and that I needed to… grow up… and I just lost it because I’ve tried. There’s only so many times that you can color alone or cuddle with stuffed animals or paint or cook without someone there when you’ve constantly had someone there and the one constant since Marquis left has been the rules and I lost it because I felt those slipping away too. Marquis answered and tried to calm me down. Said he could take care of it and not to worry. But I feel so bad Pappy because now I have interrupted his dream and your work day just because I can’t keep myself from falling apart and I’m _ashamed_ because why can’t I just be like Alex? Why am I like this, Pappy?” 

Alex had never felt his heartbreak more than in that moment where he heard his best friend having an existential crisis stemming from his lack of understanding and compassion. Then to hear that John wanted to be like him? Alex was in pieces. 

George shushed John’s tears as they came. “Jacky, sweetie, we are all born different. I was born with a dominant streak a mile wide. That’s why I love taking care of Alex and Laf and yourself when I get the chance. You have to remember that you can’t help how you were born. Laf was born a switch and was blessed to find both of us to help him explore his personality. Alex was born a brat: he may not even realize it but part of the reason we love him is because he makes you earn his submission. Yes he’s abrasive, but that’s a part of him. We love him because of it and sometimes despite of it. And you, sweet, sweet boy. You were born a middle. Not quite just a submissive and not a young enough headspace to be a little. And we love you for it. We love your imagination and your creativity. We love coloring with you and having snacks with you and telling you stories and getting to take care of you because we love you and it reminds us to take care of ourselves too. I’m sorry that Alex and I haven’t done as good of a job as Laf does. We miss him, too, and you know he misses us. Don’t pay any mind to what the TV says. They don’t know about our dynamic, and they don’t need to.” 

By the time George was done speaking, John had calmed down immensely. “Now, how about a nap? I don’t know any French lullabies, but I still remember some Southern one’s my mom used to sing.” 

Alex was about halfway through reading the book when George’s soft singing stopped, and he emerged from the room shutting the door behind him as softly as possible. He looked down where Alex was sitting. “Go on, baby girl. I’ll be in in just a minute. I gotta call Laf and let him know everything here is getting righted and not to worry.” 

Alex hustled into the playroom. He was already feeling so much guilt that he didn’t think a punishment was really necessary, but he wasn’t in any place to argue either. He stripped down and kneeled on the mat in the corner, gathering his thoughts. George walked in not long after and went over to Alex’s toybox to get supplies. When he came back, he had plenty of lengths of black rope. “Up, please. Good. Now, Alexander, do you understand why you’re being punished today?” 

“I broke the rules and I was neglectful to John’s needs. I said something mean that I didn’t actually mean and I said the rules were just suggestions.” Alex listed off. George secured his hands above his head on the hook hanging from the ceiling that Alex hated. He had to stand on his tiptoes in order to stand at all. George cupped his cheek and kissed him on the nose. 

“I know you already feel bad for what you did, but actions have consequences that you need to be reminded of sometimes. For using your words in a hurtful manner, you’re going to hold this bar of soap in your mouth until we are done. For saying that the rules are suggestions, you’re going to get a spanking for each of your personal rules and a caning for each house rule.” George went about the room grabbing the implements he needed. “Are you ready, baby girl?” 

Alex groaned in a not fun way. He hated punishments. However, he recognized their necessity and knew that George was actually doing it for Alex’s benefit. He nodded and opened his mouth as George slipped the bar in. Alex wanted to spit it out but bit down instead. “Good boy, Alex. I’m going to start with the spankings. If you need down, the bell is attached to the hook, just shake for your safeword.” 

Alex had never safeworded out of a punishment before, trusting George knew where his limits were even when he didn’t necessarily like what was going on. His arms and thighs were already burning from being up on his tiptoes, and he knew that it was just going to get worse when the impacts started. 

George’s first strike landed on the meat of his ass cheek and smarted. The next one hit much the same on the other cheek, then the sensitive crease of his thighs and back up. Alex could feel his head clearing with each strike, the complicated emotions clearing out so that he could just focus on the problem at hand and apologizing. It was over quick and on to the part that Alex actually _hated_ which was the cane. The first hit brought tears to his eyes. George wasn’t going full strength like he did with Lafayette when they watched but damn did it still hurt. “Breath through the sting, baby girl. Just nine more.” 

The next successive hits stung just as badly, and Alex couldn’t help but cry. He knew they were good tears, but he still felt a flush of embarrassment when a tear stream dripped down his face. Finally, the tenth strike hit and Alex let out a long breath through his nose. George took out the soap bar and undid Alex’s hands. His muscles protested to being released after the strain of the bondage, but it didn’t really matter because George didn’t expect him to walk anywhere anyways. He picked him up spouting praise for how well Alex took that punishment and carried him to Alex’s bedroom where he slowly massaged up his legs, rubbed lotion on the welts from the cane on his ass and thighs, then took care of his arms. By the time he was done, Alex felt like a remorseful ball of jello. George brought him a glass of water and tucked him in. “Naps are good for everyone, you know? Makes us all less testy.” 

Alex hummed an agreement. Then, quietly and with some trepidation, Alex looked at George. “If I have to nap, could you sing to me, too?” 

“Sure thing, baby girl.” And George sang. Alex was asleep faster than he had ever fallen asleep before. 

When he woke up it was to a gentle hand shaking him lightly. “Alex. Hey, Alex. You’ve gotta get up. Pappy wants to talk to us before dinner.” 

Alex pulled John down into the bed suddenly. John yelped at first but melted into giggles when Alex tried to koala him. When he was fully wrapped around John, he finally broke. “John, I am truly very sorry. I say things I don’t mean when I get full of myself. I didn’t mean to hurt you. I’m an ass. If I could make it up to you, any way whatsoever, just let me know.” 

John leaned over and kissed his nose. “It’s ok. I forgave you right after I woke up. I think your disposition would really change if you started taking a nap every day.” 

Alex groaned as John pulled him from the bed. John was surprisingly strong even though he was the same petite stature as Alex. When Alex grumbled as much, John just laughed and continued dragging Alex down the stairs. “If you actually worked out when we were at the gym, you’d probably be just as strong. Marquis likes me to keep fit, so I do it for him.” 

When they got downstairs, George was in a surprisingly chipper mood and was cooking in an apron that had glittery red lips on the front with a caption that said, “Kiss the Cook!” Alex was more than a little confused by the sight, but didn’t complain when George pulled him in for a kiss. “There’s my sleepy boys. Alright, both of you get settled. I’m going to tell you the idea that Lafayette and I came up with.” 

Alex sat down on the island stool beside the one where John had obviously sitting and coloring. John resumed his spot but put away the sketch and his colored pencils. George slid two plates of food in front of them before bringing his own to the table island to sit across from him. Alex noticed that his food had already been cut up for him. Assuming it was John’s plate, he went to switch, but saw that John’s plate was also already cut up into smaller bites. “Sir?” Alex asked, confusion evident on his face. 

George quickly swallowed his food to explain, “MM, right. So you and I only know a little about what Laf and John get up to, which I feel is an error on our part. We are a family; we should be better prepared for something like this. So Laf sent me John’s daily schedule and rules and for the next 24 hours we are going to live those rules and John is going to explain to us why each one is there and important. Do you think you’re up for that?” 

Alex thought about it for more than a second. It would be a good way to learn about John and Laf. And really he owed it to John to be more understanding. Alex locked eyes with George. “What does that mean in regards to scenes and titles? Do you want me to call you something different for the trial period? Should I act or is this supposed to come naturally.” 

“Baby girl, I don’t want to ask you to do anything that would make you uncomfortable. Think of this is as an extended scene. For John, this is what comes naturally. For you, some things might feel a little forced. We are only asking that you keep an open mind and give it a shot. You can always say no,” George explained, keeping his tone neutral. Alex hated when he did that. He knew it was to eliminate bias in Alex’s decision making process but sometimes Alex just wanted his opinion. ‘And wouldn’t that be one of the jobs of my caretaker?’ Alex thought slyly. 

“Yeah, I’m in! I’m assuming the first step was dinner?” Alex looked to John instead of George for the answer to get the ball rolling on John explaining things. George grinned like an idiot and waited for John to answer. 

“Right! Dinner. So, you missed this part for your nap, but on the usual night Marquis and I will come downstairs to get dinner ready about 30 minutes before Pappy is set to come home. Marquis sets the menu at the start of each week, so really dinner prep is just getting what is needed for each meal out of the fridge and cooking or combining it. This cuts down on household stress overall, makes Marquis feel like his serving George in some way, and gives us some time to get ready for group time. I set the table while Marquis calls Alex down so that we can all be ready when you get home, Pappy. Marquis will either cut my food up for me or feed me. I personally feel like this helps me focus. Part of my problem is that my brain is always refocusing my perspective to whatever catches my eye in an artistic sense which makes it hard for me to focus on other things like conversation or eating or whatever. By cutting up my food or feeding me directly, it’s one less thing I have to focus on. Plus, it’s just nice to not have to think about portion control or biting off more than you can chew. Shows that they care.” John tapered off towards the end and shoved a bite in his mouth to show that he was done explaining. George gave him a thumbs up, and then they went on with dinner as usual. 

At the end of the meal, Alex looked to John. “What’s next on the schedule?” 

“Well, you and George usually take care of the dishes and then we usually do a group scene or individual scenes or watch TV or whatever. Then I start getting ready for bed at 9:30. Marquis runs us a bath, then we go through our nightly routine. I’m in bed by 10:30 and asleep by 11. There are very few exceptions. Scenes are for, well, whatever is needed. Sometimes Marquis needs attention. Sometimes I need reprimanded or rewarded. It just depends on how the day went. The bath is to wind down and really connect. We touch each other in a scene but we don’t _touch_ each other in the way that bathing together does. Plus, then you can really dig deep during aftercare. Then having a bedtime routine is just a good way to wind down after a long day. You doing your thing and by the end of it your body knows that it’s time to rest. Plus going to bed consistently will help you feel better the next day when you wake up.” John helped clear away the dishes while he spoke, then stepped back to the island to resume coloring. When they were don’t with the dishes, George asked what John would like to do. 

“Alex can’t do another scene tonight, so maybe tomorrow you can show us how you and Laf play. Is there something else we could do tonight until time to get ready for bed?” George rolled his sleeves back down. Even while he was at home, it was hard-pressed to find him in anything but business attire. 

John looked up from his sketch. “Well, they are airing the swimsuit and lingerie walks tonight if we wanted to see Marquis partially naked on national television.” 

Alex snorted. If he wanted to see Laf naked, most mornings he could just roll over. But, this type of naked meant that he would have makeup to highlight his muscles and hide any imperfections which was kind of appealing. The man was ripped after all. “I’m in,” Alex chirped, mischief apparent in his voice as he continued, “at least, as long as that’s ok with Daddy.” 

George choked on seemingly nothing and tried to hide it by clearing his throat. John scrunched up his nose at Alex. George collected his bearings and ushered the boys to the media room. “Really, Alexander? You’re supposed to be taking this seriously.” 

“Sorry, Sir. Honestly though, I’m surprised at how natural that felt. Maybe I have a secret daddy kink. Would you hate that?” Alex spoke honestly. Obviously, it was something that wasn’t going to be explored over the first few days, but it was something to consider for the future. George didn’t dismiss it like Alex expected either. “We can talk about it next Sunday, if you’re still serious about it and want to explore the concept. I’m not opposed to you calling me different titles as long as they hold the same respect across the board.” 

They settled in and turned on the TV. As if by divine intervention, an interview with Laf was just airing. He looked amazing even though those that knew him well enough could see the signs of fatigue through the heavily made up exterior. 

_The interviewer was a woman who looked to be around George’s age and seemed a little star-struck to be speaking with Lafayette. “So, Lafayette, you’ve been the hot topic of this year’s walks. How does it feel to have all eyes on you?”_

_“Well, I have to say that it’s been a dream of mine to be a part of something this big my whole life. The hours have been long and being a model is not an easy job, but it’s been worth every moment.”_

_“You seem to make it look easy! Your walk has been described as both fierce and effortless. But your skills on the runway and in front of the camera haven’t been the only thing up for discussion this week. Can you give us a little light on your family? Rumor has it that you are in a polyamorous relationship with three other men!”_

_Laf chuckled and ran his hand through his perfectly done hair, tousling it a bit. “That makes it sound so scandalous. I was really blessed to find three men that love me as much as I love them. I have a dom, a co-sub, and a little who are waiting for me with open arms when I get back home. As far as casting light on them, my dom could honestly be considered a saint. People meet him and he’s one of those people you aspire to be like when you grow up. He always has encouraged us to reach for our goals in a realistic way and helps us lift ourselves up instead of just laying down a ladder and telling us to climb. You’re lookin’ at me like I have to be exaggerating, but I’m not. Then my co-sub is absolutely brilliant. He’s a spitfire and has opinions on everything. I could sit and listen to him speak for days, and if you sit still long enough you might have to. No, really! But he’s altogether a great guy, I couldn’t ask for someone better to serve with. Then, certainly not least, there’s my little one. He brings such creative joy to my life; he’s the one that inspires me to be the best version of myself. I get bittersweet talking about him because this is the longest we’ve had to be separated which is hard. And I know he’s supporting me from a distance. I just have to say I’m excited to be here, but I will also be excited to get off the plane on Friday evening.”_

_When Lafayette got a little bleary eyed talking about John, the interviewer also reacted emotionally. “Well, thank you so much for stopping by to chat with us. Lafayette, everyone!” The studio audience reacted beautifully and the scene shifted to models walking down the runway in minimal garments and towels._

John wiped his eyes and rubbed at the locking wrist cuffs he wore constantly. Alex wasn’t sure if the metal didn’t tarnish because it was made that way or because John constantly fidgeted with them and that polished them. George cuddled them both close and watched for Laf to appear on the screen of the TV. It took about 30 minutes for him to finally walk, wearing a black sequined speedo with a sunhat and larger than life sunglasses. John was excited to see that he was still wearing the key around his neck. They finished the segment and turned off the TV, cuddled together in silence for only a moment before George suggested that they head upstairs to the big master bathroom. 

John adjusted the temperature of the water before leaving Alex in the bathroom claiming to need something out of his. When he came back, he had a whole shower caddy full of different jars and what looked like powdered balls. Alex seemed to startle him when he asked, “What is all that stuff?” 

John looked from the jars to Alex. “Um, bath supplies? Have you never taken a bath?” 

Alex blushed. “I’ve never taken a bath with any of that stuff, no. Again, what is it?” 

John seemed aghast telling Alex that he had never lived if he hadn’t used some of the stuff in the basket. “These are bath salts and supposedly they help relax your muscles. I figured if George had really let you have it earlier you’d appreciate that. Then these are bath bombs! You drop them in the water and it makes the color change and the water smell good. Then it makes your skin real soft when you get out. If you wanna pick one, you can. Marquis has a friend that makes them and sends them to me so I have like 4 more tubs of them. I’ll go grab the candles while you do that.” 

By the time John got back, Alex had made a selection, and from the look on John’s face, Alex could tell it was the right selection. “You’re gonna love that one. It turns the bath purple and gold and has glitter flakes all up in it. We’ll be covered in gold glitter for days.” 

George finally made his way into the bathroom with shampoo and conditioner. Alex was lighting the candles and John was spreading the salt in the water. “Alex, watch this!” he giggled excitedly. Alex’s face lit up when the ball hit the water and started fizzing out different colors and glitter. 

Once everything was ready, George helped the boys into the large bath so that they were situated facing each other. The water was the perfect temperature and all the stuff in the bath made Alex’s skin and muscles soft and relaxed. George chuckled when Alex sunk so low in the tub that his chin was touching the water. John gently grabbed one of Alex’s legs and started to massage the muscles there. Alex mirrored his gesture trying to copy what he was doing. They probably looked silly, but for the moment Alex could care less because it felt amazing. George used the detachable faucet to go around the tub and wash each boy’s hair. Alex couldn’t remember the last time he had felt so blissed out from something that wasn’t sex. Before he knew it, the bath had cooled, and John was ushering him up out of the water and into a towel. 

When they had gotten sufficiently dry, George brought each of them their pajamas (actual pajamas, Alex was shocked to see) and helped them put them on. As he was buttoning up Alex’s pajama top, George nodded in John’s direction. “Alright, Jacky, what’s next?” 

“We have to pick out outfits for tomorrow. Marquis picked mine out for the week before he left. He has more style than me in general, but I also like to dress like art in contrasting colors with drastic lines and he helps me do that in a wat that is stylish to others while not going against what I want. It’s nice to be able to just throw clothes on in the morning and be able to go.” 

Alex was dreading whatever outfit George picked out for him. George’s style was impeccable, but it was also way more formal than Alex ever wore. John helped distract Alex from his worries by gathering extra blankets for the big bed. When George came back, he laid Alex’s bundle of clothes folded nicely at the foot of the bed beside John’s stack with a little stick note that said, “Thursday,” on top in Laf’s handwriting. John padded out of his room carrying a large, leather bound book. When George and Alex looked at him quizzically, he shrugged his shoulders. “Have y’all never heard of a bedtime story? Jesus, you carry around a flogger and no one in this family bats an eye but the moment I come out carrying the complete works of Lewis Carroll it’s like I’ve grown a third head.” 

Alex couldn’t help but laugh at John’s disposition. John thrust the book into George’s hand, open to a specific page. Alex was expecting to hear the start of Alice in Wonderland, but instead was introduced to the story of Sylvie and Bruno. He was paying rapt attention when George closed the book. Both Alex and John groaned, and George looked taken aback. “You said only three chapters, right?” 

John whined, “Yes, I guess I did say that. We read three a night. Then it’s 10:30ish and…” Before he could finish, his phone was ringing. He almost dropped it in his excitement, “Hi Marquis! … I AM having a much better night… Yeah, I think your plan is working. Are you getting enough sleep? You don’t sound like it… I miss you more… What? … Oh. Yeah I can do that. I love you, too… Yeah, yeah, okay don’t get cocky. Can’t wait to see you again… I’ll tell them. Bonne nuit!” 

John looked back at the other two on the bed. “Marquis said he missed us all. He hoped that our night was going better than our day, and that Alex’s ass wasn’t too sore from the beating he probably received.” 

Alex pouted as George reminded John to watch his language. John held his hands up in mock innocence. “He also said that his phone call was going to be short so that George could sing us to sleep since he heard it went well earlier today. He sends his love and he’s having trouble waiting till Friday to fly home.” 

John nuzzled into George and pulled Alex in close to George’s other side. “Jacky, you sure are eager to go to sleep,” Alex commented even though he was feeling kind of tired too despite his nap earlier. 

John’s eyes opened in shock momentarily, not used to hearing his nickname from Alex, but then closed just as quickly with a smile painting his face. “The faster we go to bed, the faster tomorrow will come. The faster tomorrow comes, the faster Friday will be here and Marquis will be home.” He tugged gently on George’s arm. 

George looked confused at first, then remembered he was supposed to be singing. Alex was surprisingly out before he reached the first chorus. 

Alex opened a bleary eye as someone gently shook him awake. Alex refused to open his eyes but leaned into the kiss on his forehead before a strong hand ruffled his hair. George was then waking up John as well. “Come on, boys. Laf told me not to let you all lay in bed all day. Jacky, sweetheart, you gotta get up, too.” 

Alex covered up a laugh with a yawn. John was under at least four blankets and had two pillows on his head and lower back with his stuffed turtle sitting like a conquering hero on his shoulder blades. The only part of him that was visible was his heavily tattooed arm that he was waving in George’s general direction to get him to go away. Muffled under his many layers, John whined, “Pappy… I don’t wanna get up… You can’t make me.” 

Alex knew that was the wrong thing to say before John did. After all, it was never a good idea to challenge George, even in a playful way. George wore mischief well and was not afraid to play dirty if he thought that’s what he needed to win. “Oh I can’t?” he said feigning innocence. 

Alex moved out of the way as George pounced on top of the lump that was John and scooped him up, covers and all, legs kicking at the blankets that were keeping him from moving out of George’s grip. Alex couldn’t help but grin. It was pretty freaking cute to watch. “Pappy put me down! Put me down! I’ll be good! I’ll get up!” John squealed from where George was not only holding him in the air but now also tickling him. 

George sat him on his feet and John quickly shed the blankets casting them a mutinous glare before going back to giggling at George. Alex handed him their clothes for the day, and the group split to take care of their morning routine. 

Alex was almost afraid to look at the bundle of clothes he had brought to the bathroom. Putting on a brave face, he unfolded the bundle. George had picked out one of his favorite cowl neck hoodies and an old campaign shirt with George’s favorite pair of Alex’s skinny jeans and his loafers to complete the look. Also at the bottom of the bundle was a pair of lace boy-shorts. Alex blushed a little, knowing that he’d never seen those before and knew they must be a gift from George. He quickly got dressed, pulling his hair into a messy bun before stepping back out of his room. John was sitting in the floor of George’s room seemingly content to just wait there until George and Alex showed back up. 

“So what’s on the agenda for today?” Alex clasped his hands together in front of him and rocked back on his heels. John grinned at him, standing and walking over to wait beside him. 

“Usually we start with breakfast. Then we knock out the chores and go to the gym. Shower before lunch, lunch, training the dogs, naptime, work review and work, dinner, etc. It’s a pretty easy schedule to follow.” John ticked off the list on his fingers. George emerged from his bathroom looking refreshed and surprisingly dressed down in a polo and jeans. Alex hadn’t even been sure he owned jeans. 

Breakfast was much the same as most morning’s breakfasts, and chores were chores with the exception of George doing the things that Laf would normally take care of. The drive to the gym was nice, in Alex’s opinion. He hadn’t seen George work out with them in a long time, opting to get up early in the morning before work even on the weekends to work out. John pulled him aside when they were walking in. “Alright so the gym is a good place to really settle into a littler mindset without George needing to be aware. If you find yourself noticing him instead of focusing on your workout, don’t fight it. Just switch your thoughts around to really appreciate the man in front of you. Remind yourself that this man is strong and makes you feel safe and protected because of it. Just trust me.” 

John pulled back from Alex as George turned around to inquire why they were whispering. John gave George a playful pat on the ass before walking towards the cardio room, “Just admiring your ass, Pappy.” 

Alex’s jaw could have broken the floor it dropped so wide. George just shook his head and chuckled. They never really discouraged John from acting so bold because it happened so infrequently, but when he did he really made it count. Alex shook away his thoughts and headed to his normal treadmill. After a mile or so, he looked up to see that a trainer had taken to spotting for George on the bench. George was laying there with a ridiculous amount of weight on the bar, going through a warm up press before getting up to stretch and add more weight. 

Alex was about to look away when he remembered what John said. Instead, he let his eyes trail George’s muscles as they flexed with each press of the bar. George was ripped; he had been fit for as long as any of the boys had known him. His arms were like the size of Alex’s thighs and his torso was stacked. Alex hadn’t forgotten how strong George was. He carried them around with ease, sometimes even flailing and fighting back. But Alex hadn’t appreciated the smooth elegance of his muscles in a while, and seeing it firsthand was making his heart flutter. Alex was small and George was large, and wasn’t that just something to think about? Alex had the thought that George was ‘definitely Daddy material’ before he shook the aroused fog from his head and went back to running, blaming the flush to his cheeks on the fact that he was starting his third mile and not that he had been ogling his Dom from across the gym. 

They finished up and headed home. Alex was kind of hoping for a group shower, but George sent them to their individual ones instead, saying that they would get out faster that way since they had lost track of time at the gym. Shortly after, with showers and lunch out of the way, they headed outside for dog training. This was usually actually just play time since the dogs weren’t allowed in the main house; they had their own separate temperature controlled indoor/outdoor kennels. The four came running only stopping at George’s command. Alex and John took a spot under one of the yard’s big oak trees to watch as George ran the dogs through their tricks and various games of fetch and tug of war. 

“So,” Alex started cautiously, “would you mind telling me more about the whole ‘little headspace’ thing? Like, I think I’m getting it based off of what you lead me to do earlier, but I want to be more sure.” 

John patted Alex’s hand with his own. “Well, just like any other relationship really, it’s a power exchange and it’s about trust. For me, I look at Marquis, and I immediately feel safe and loved. It’s like coming home after a long vacation and realizing that your house is still immaculately the way you left it and just waiting for you to step inside and start living again. I give Marquis the reins because I know that he’s gonna lead us someplace good and safe for the both of us to the best of his ability. Everybody stumbles and falters; I don’t ask for perfection. I just trust that he’s always going to do what is right. When you look at George, I can tell you’ve already got some of that going on. You don’t like handing over the reins, and that is ok! But you also trust George to be able to pull you back in from whatever you fling yourself into and that’s pretty close. Do you like having George make these decisions for you?” 

Alex thought about everything John had said. He didn’t think he wanted to exchange that much power; he liked where they were already, however it had been nice for the day to kind of give in and let George make decisions for him. He could see them doing it casually once a month or so. He’d have to think on it more, he decided. George called them in to finish up playing with the dogs before ushering them back inside. 

“So, what’s the best way to wind down for a nap?” George asked John. John was already yawning into his sleeve, but sheepishly smiled at George and Alex. “Well, I usually just lay down somewhere and fall asleep naturally for an hour or so. If you have a hard time falling asleep, Marquis keeps chamomile tea in the cupboard that could help. Soft music and a quiet space work best.” 

John gave them a small wave before grabbing a throw blanket and settling in on one of the couches in the media room near the kitchen. He was softly snoring within minutes. George puled Alex onto his lap. Alex took the moment to appreciate how large George was again. There was a slight strain in Alex’s thighs from straddling his waist (and from his punishment yesterday) and Alex ran his hands, smaller than he remembered them being, down George’s broad chest. George shivered under the silent adoration and pulled Alex in close, adjusting his legs so that Alex would be more comfortable laying on him. “How are you holding up, baby girl? I know you don’t like being away from your work this long.” 

Alex hadn’t even considered the fact that most mornings he would have been plowing through articles frantically and pushing off his chores until now, until, well, now. He told George as much, causing him to chuckle. “Maybe this would be good for you then. I’ve never seen you less stressed than today. Or is this just good behavior from your punishment?” 

Alex swatted his arm, “I’m always good, thank you very much. But this has been kind of nice. I’ve liked having you home. We don’t often get to avoid napping together.” 

George laughed, causing John to groan in his sleep. “It is nice. Maybe I will cut back on my days in the office. I’ll think about it.” He kissed Alex on the forehead. “Now, sleep. I think John’s got a full evening planned for us.” 

When an hour had passed, John was waking them up and getting them to their feet. “Come on! It’s the best part of the day! You have to get up!” 

“And **what** exactly is the best part of the day?” Alexander asked, blinking away sleep and wanting to complain about being pulled out of George’s arms. George also stood up slower than usual and stretched, bones cracking as he settled back into his normal self. 

“The work review!” John was beaming and bouncing from foot to foot, obviously anxious to head where ever they were going. When Alex and George looked at him confused, he seemed to remember that he had to explain things to them. “Oh, right, um… Marquis and I were trying to find a way to make work a more meaningful part of our process. What we came up with was a reward system. So what we do is, I let him into my studio and we spend the first 30 minutes or so just talking about my projects and my artistic method and how things are going. Then, the next 30 is a review of my goals from the last time I set them: some are daily goals, some are weekly, some vary from art show to art show. If I make my goals in the time that I said I would, I earn points; if I miss my goals, we talk about what happened and how I can fix it in the future. I can use my points to earn things like extra dessert, picking Marquis outfits, “Get-Out-of-Punishment” cards, and getting to pick what we do in the bedroom. That way, I get my pieces done in time without it feeling so much like work. After the points are awarded, we sit down and work until time to start fixing dinner. Obviously, y’all won’t have any points yet, but we can walk through the process just to get a feel for it. I can start, then we can go to Alex’s room?” 

They all agreed, Alex intrigued by the idea of deadlines being seen as opportunities to earn a reward instead of as necessary scary upcoming dates. It was no wonder John was always calmer at his art shows than Alex was approaching his book signings. John let them into his studio and they settled down on the couch. John didn’t go into his weekly goals, instead opting to just show the pieces he was working on. He was in the middle of a new tattoo sketch: a baby dragon that would coil on his right shoulder blade and connect to his sleeve via a fade from scales to stars to flowers. He had apparently been trying to get it right for around a week but the stars weren’t being cooperative. His easel had a large abstract water color on it at the moment that he only mentioned in passing before moving on to his clay table. There was a beautiful bust of a mermaid lounging on a beach, each detail perfect from her hair to the sand. John was apparently making the glaze for the piece from scratch, but assured them that she would be painted and done by his art show at the end of the month. 

Having apparently praised John’s work enough, they were ushered into Alex’s study. His tea from the day before was sitting beside his open laptop. Papers were scattered around as usual. George gave a disapproving look before settling onto an open spot on the couch and having John sit on his lap. Alex assured them that he was going to clean soon. John waved away his concerns. “The work review isn’t a time to worry about technicalities like a clean work space unless that’s what you and your partner decide. For now, just tell us about what you’re working on.” 

That Alex could do. He opened with a brief description of each article he had completed that week. Always his favorite topic, Alex was particularly proud of the article he had submitted about submissive rights to a ‘safe space’ where even claimed submissives could go where their dom couldn’t follow. That way, people had the choice to relax somewhere if they needed a break or just a sympathetic ear without having to worry about saying something wrong. John and George both gave their comments on the idea, both positive, and Alex launched into how his book was going. He was in the middle of a biography, having had a traumatic childhood and having to immigrate before his town paired him off with a random dom which brought him to both freedoms and trials in America. He was particularly struggling with getting through writing about the death of his mother. Every time he got words on the page, he ended up deleting them. John had gotten up to give him a sympathetic hug. “Biographies are hard because they bring up things we might not want to write about or remember. I’m proud of you for sharing your struggles with us.” 

Alex felt himself relax into the comfort that John was offering. He was well aware that he was a slut for praise, but he was surprised at how god it felt to share what was on his mind with someone else. Having interrupted a few of Alex’s brainstorming sessions, George was eyeing him from the couch with surprise at how pliant he was being evident on his face. Alex slowly pulled away from the embrace, smiling at John. John cleared his throat, “Now, I’m going to go work. Y’all obviously don’t have to do this, but my suggestion would be for George to take a turn telling you about his work, then for you and him to try and figure out how to get your thoughts on paper. I’ll come get y’all when it’s time for dinner?” 

Both George and Alex nodded, and John left them. Alex sat down in his desk chair, and listened to George talk about being in charge: dealing with the Board, keeping the bulk of his workforce happy and healthy, the struggles and successes that the company trusted him with. It was nice to get an honest response about how things were going outside the house. Alex chimed in here or there with important tidbits, but otherwise just listened to what George had to say. He had forgotten along the way how much he loved just listening to George speak. George then made Alex get up and let him sit in the desk chair with Alex perched on his lap. Together, they worked through the hardest parts of Alex’s childhood story, and by the time John came to get them Alex had something that he could send to his editor that she might actually like. 

Dinner went by with Alex seemingly lost in his own brain. He couldn’t believe how long it had been since he had just sat down and appreciated George and all that he did for their family. And it was then that Alex realized the meaning behind what John had told him. He was so in love with George that he could feel it radiating through him. He was like that before, but this felt like it was invigorating and a restorative kind of love. Something more unshakable. Something more permanent. Dinner ended, and Alex assumed that they were going to watch TV and head to bed like they had the night before. Instead, as they were washing the dishes, George sent Alex and John upstairs, telling John to help Alex ‘get ready’. 

Alex looked confusedly at John. “What did he mean? Get ready?” 

John smiled fondly at Alex, ruffling his hair after he pulled it out of his bun. “Apparently Marquis sent George a description for one of my favorite scenes we do so I’m gonna help you get into the right headspace for it.” 

Alex quieted his thoughts as John helped him strip. “Sometimes, after long days, I just like to feel small. I like to feel like the world is big and I am small and that’s ok, because there are big people out there to take care of small things like me…” John trailed off as he put one of George’s long nightshirts on Alex. It hit him mid-thigh almost like a dress, the sleeves hanging off of his arms. “Small things like me _and you._ ” John booped his nose with his pointer finger. 

“So when I want to feel small, I clear everything off the bed: fold the blankets, remove the pillows, so it’s just me and the sheet. Then, I put myself right up against the headboard, and I make myself look small in the big bed. And I feel it in my bones that I am little. Then, when Marquis comes through the door, I’m flooded with feelings because he is _big_ and he is _strong_ and most importantly he loves me and wants to protect me. And then I follow where he leads for the night,” John spoke softly, putting care into the words as he and Alex moved the covers off of George’s bed and John helped him get settled in the middle. 

When Alex was settled, John turned to leave. Nervously, Alex called out, “Wait, Jacky! Aren’t you staying?” 

John smiled at Alex in a way that seemed wistful. “I would, but I don’t think I could control myself which is a problem since I’m not allowed to cum without Marquis present and my whining would be a distraction. Besides, Pappy is waiting for me to come back downstairs so I can skype Marquis while y’all are up here. I’ll see you before bedtime.” 

And with that, Alex was alone in George’s big bed in George’s big room. Alex took a steadying breath. It wasn’t hard for him to focus on feeling small. Alex was so engulfed by even the smell of George’s cologne and self and the feeling of being wrapped in his clothes that he felt safe. The scene was set perfectly. All that was missing was George. 

Alex worked on his meditations and keeping his breathing steady. He had never liked waiting, but he trusted George to already know that. When he opened his eyes back up, George was softly opening the door. His eyes locked on Alex and drank in the sight of him alone in his bed. Alex could see the possessiveness fill his features, feel the heat of his gaze, as if this was his first time really seeing Alex. 

“ _Oh, baby girl._ ,” George practically breathed as he stalked to where Alex was on the bed. 

Because it felt like the only appropriate thing to say in the moment, Alex responded with a breathy, “Hi, Daddy.” 

Alex appreciated the shiver that went through George’s body at the title. George was kneeling on the bed in front of Alexander still not touching him yet, just looking. Just his presence was filling his vision, the room, his thoughts. They rarely had sex that was so focused on just the two of them, no toys or tricks or distractions. The tension in the air felt like so much and not enough at the same time. George was still looking at him with that intense gaze as he cupped his cheek and ran his hand through Alex’s hair. 

“You look beautiful like this,” George complimented, pulling the shirt Alex was wearing up over his head and tossing it somewhere on the floor behind them. Normally Alex would be pulling at George’s clothes, trying to undress him, urgently craving skin to skin contact, but John had said to let him lead, so Alex trusted George to know what to do next. 

George, of course, stripped down to his boxers. When he was back in front of Alex, he pulled his legs so that Alex would be lying flat on the bed. As George crawled over him, effectively boxing him into the mattress, he felt a sudden warmth spread through his body. He flushed, realizing that the warmth was followed by arousal and need. George let his hands roam Alex, familiar yet gentle, rediscovering all of his sensitive spots without touching his dick. 

George was worrying a spot right below Alex’s jawline having kissed him thoroughly and seeming to want to mark him all over, and Alex felt like he was melting into the sheets. He wiggled beneath George trying to get him to speed up without saying anything. George chuckled and held Alex’s hips to the mattress. The pressure on his hips caused him to groan, and Alex could only really focus on how big George’s hand was against his hipbone. 

“You like that pressure, baby girl? My hands all over your body?” George nipped his ear as Alex whimpered beneath him, his touch alternating between a firm grip and light circles right at the waist of his underwear. George shifted his weight so that he could stroke Alex through the lace boy-shorts. “You look so gorgeous writhing beneath me. Pliant. **Mine.** ” 

Alex rutted up into George’s hand. George kissed his nose and continued stroking him. “Want me to take care of you, little one?” 

“Please!” Alex sounded needy even to himself. George placed some more kisses and bites down Alex’s torso while pulling his underwear off. Alex cried out when George ghosted one hand over his cock. 

“Shhh. Daddy’s got you. Let me take care of you.” George coated his hand in lube before stroking Alex. George knew the best ways to get Alex off and the best ways to keep him right on the edge. Based on the flick of his wrist over the head of Alex’s dick, tonight was the second variety. Alex kept rutting up into George’s hand trying to get more pressure or faster or the right spot or anything. 

While he was so focused on George’s hand on his dick, he missed George’s other hand moving to his entrance. He jumped a little when George slid in to the first knuckle, not knowing whether to press down or buck up to find friction. George shushed his quiet murmurs adding in a second finger. Alex decided that thrusting down was more beneficial than up when George started to rub against his prostate. “Lord, please!” Alex whined. 

“Ask again nicely, and I might lay you down just right.” George crooked his fingers to keep pressing insistently. Alex cried out, “Please, Daddy.” 

“What a good boy,” George cooed. He slid out of his boxers and slicked up, lining up with Alex’s hole with practiced ease and pressing in. Alex felt so filled as George rolled his hips to press into him slowly. Alex let him keep the pace slow, matching his thrusts and setting a gentle rhythm. Alex felt George drag against his prostate on every thrust. The slow intensity built faster than either had been expecting. George’s thrusts became less rhythmic as he took Alex’s dick back in hand and stroked him until he was crying out and holding on to George to ride out his orgasm. George thrusted a few more times before biting down on Alex’s collarbone and moaning through his. 

George pulled out and shushed Alex’s displeased whines, disappearing into the bathroom to come back with a washcloth. He manhandled Alex so that he could get him thoroughly clean planting kisses where ever he could reach in the meantime. “You know, you really do look beautiful when you surrender so openly like that.” 

“Thank you, Sir. That was… amazing, actually. It just was really intense right?” Alex rattled. George just hummed, putting his shirt back on Alex. He tried to pull George back into bed with him, but George picked Alex up off the bed and tossed him over his shoulder. “Alright, little one, let’s go find Jacky.” Alex only wiggled a little to get more comfortable but let George take him where ever they were going. 

When they made it down the stairs, they could hear John in the media room excitedly chatting away. Alex heard Laf’s laughter, distorted through the Skype speaker systems. When they rounded the doorway, John and Laf both excitedly greeted them. “Mes amours! Bonne Nuit! Alexander, you are positively glowing, as are you, Sir! My, I have missed your faces.” 

John climbed up onto George’s lap when he got settled on the couch. They chatted about the walks, the publicity, and if he was having fun when suddenly Laf turned to someone off screen and motioned for them to come over. “Family, this is Adrienne! She is my favorite model here, and also she avidly follows John’s artwork. Adri, this is the rest of my family!” 

A beautiful girl appeared on screen and cooed in French about each one of them. Finally she waved good bye, and Laf checked his watch. “We have to line up in about an hour for the last walk, then I will be home. I love you all. Rest up and I will see you tomorrow night!” 

They all waved good bye, John whining a bit about Laf having to go so soon, but blowing him a kiss and saying goodbye before the video cut off anyway. When the screen went black, George tried to prompt them to get up. “Come on. It’s past y’all’s bedtime.” 

“You can’t make us both get up at once,” John pouted from his seat. It was playful; Alex could see a small mile contained behind the lower lip being stuck out, and he head to admit that it had the desired effect on George. 

“Oh, can’t I?” He said wrangling them both side by side on the couch to a chorus of laughter and giggles. George carried them upstairs, one on each shoulder. It was late, so George decided they could do without a bath. “Get dressed and hop in bed. Tomorrow we are gonna spend the day at the office until we have to go get Laf from the airport.” 

It wasn’t long before they were settled into bed, and George was lightly singing to them again while stroking circles on Alex’s back. 

John was the first one up the next day. Alex had felt him get up multiple times throughout the night. He couldn’t imagine how excited he was to be reunited with Laf, and he could see the nervous energy building as John bounced around from place to place in a way that looked like he thought time would move faster if he just refused to sit still. 

George was surprisingly the last one up and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes as he addressed the boys. “Alright, sweet ones. Pack a go bag. Martha has breakfast in the office but we will be there until late and I don’t want y’all to get bored. I’ll go get lunch ready once I’m dressed and we will meet at the door at 7:30 sharp. Got it?” 

Both boys nodded, scrambling around to collect the things that would keep them occupied while George got up to do his normal morning routine. John eventually wandered into Alex’s room, having already had his go-bag packed. “What are you putting in yours?” He asked as his eyes followed Alex around his office. 

Alex was frantically stuffing things in an over-full laptop messenger bag. “Well, I need my tablet, my laptop, my iPod, and all their chargers. I should take a phone charger, too. A couple of my articles need revised so I have their paper copies. I’ve got my headphones. That should be enough for the day.” 

He looked up to see John shaking his head and smiling. “What?” he asked, matching his lopsided grin to John’s. 

“Nothing! _Nothing._ I’ll pack some extras of my stuff,” John said cryptically as he exited the room. Alex located his spare charger and made it down the stairs just as it was time to head out. George laughed as they tossed their overstuffed bags into his trunk and then hopped into their seats, Alex immediately claiming shotgun so he could play with the radio. 

Martha was waiting for them in the office with three McDonald’s bags. “Good morning, boys! Good morning, Sir! It’s nice to see you all today. John, are you feeling better? George said you had a slight bug.” 

John walked over and kissed Martha on the cheek. “All better! It’s amazing how quickly symptoms improve when George and Alex are around. Ooh, actually, I have something for you.” John pulled out the watercolor that had been on his easel the day before. The watercolors had been covered in mostly black, only peeking through in the petals of a really elaborate rose lined with white and gold paint. “It’s not much, but I wanted to say thank you for being so amazing to George and the rest of us. It’s an original; I put my signature on it so if you ever don’t want it, it’ll be worth something to sell.” 

Martha had tears in her eyes. She ruffled John’s hair, praising the artwork and immediately calling for the office handy man to come hang it for her. John padded past her and into George’s office with his breakfast. Alex stepped up to Martha and kissed the cheek John hadn’t. “Radiant as ever, Martha, I don’t know how you do it.” 

“Do what?” she asked, dabbing away the remnant of her tears. 

Alex wiggled his eyebrows and winked, “Why, how you wake up and look so gorgeous every morning. I can see why George faced his desk this way instead of towards the skyline. The view is nothing compared to a view of you.” 

Martha playfully put a hand to her heart and ‘fainted’ before shooing Alex into George’s office with John. George was the last one she ushered in, filling him in on his daily schedule before stepping out and letting them get to work. John had already surrounded himself with his sketchbooks and a mixture of regular pencils, watercolor pencils, and tracing markers. He had on his favorite headphones that had cat ears at the top that lit up to the music and could function as speakers if necessary. Alex was surrounded by paper and electronics, lost in his own little world. George got busy on his computer, emailing and Skype-ing with necessary people. 

Lunch rolled around faster than anyone expected. George handed the boys their food and they chatted about what they were doing. Laf called in to chat while he was waiting in the airport to board his flight back home. “I should be landing around 10:30! The skies look clear; they aren’t expecting any delays. Jacky, are you up for staying up that late?” they could all hear Laf’s smirk through the phone. 

Alex watched John’s face light up as he realized that he had permission to stay up late enough to go to the airport with them. “Of course. I can’t wait for you to be home, Marquis! I wouldn’t miss it.” 

Laf stayed on the phone line until George had to finish his lunch for a conference call. They all went back to their various spots in the room. Mid-afternoon, Alex felt his eyes start to get heavy, and he started to yawn. John plopped down beside him, holding a cup of tea. Alex took a drink, only to realize that it was his favorite mixed blend from home. “I figured you’d start to get sleepy around this time. The couches are pretty comfortable if you want to nap with me,” he offered hesitantly. 

Alex hadn’t considered a nap, but as soon as the words left John’s mouth he knew that’s what he wanted to do. “Sure! I didn’t bring a blanket or pillow or anything though so it might not be the most comfortable one,” Alex said, saving his work and letting John help him up although he was rolling his eyes for some reason. 

“I told you I would bring extra. Or, if you’d rather since they are kind of thin blankets, we could just share. The couches are big enough. But I call big spoon!” John explained while pulling out blankets and a pillow from his bag. Alex laughed and let himself be dragged to one of George’s couches. John laid one blanket down, climbing on top of it and wiggling around to get comfortable, then motioned for Alex to join him. Alex flopped down, wiggling back into John and making him gasp then laugh but adjust so that their hips were not spooned together. “Don’t tease me, Alex! Unlike you, I haven’t gotten to play all week,” John chided as he nuzzled into the crook of Alex’s neck from behind and wrapping his arms around him. 

Alex laughed and agreed not to do it again. They settled down quickly, and were both so soundly asleep that they didn’t notice when George came to adjust their blanket and take a video of them cuddled together, Alex’s mouth open in a snore and John patting Alex’s face in his sleep to make him stop, to send to Laf (and possibly post on Instagram later). 

When Alex woke up the sky was painted vibrant shades of purple, pink, and gold as the sun was dropping over the horizon. Alex was still flush against John who was sleeping soundly. George was typing away at some presumably important document seemingly fully focused on the task at hand. He didn’t look up until Alex tried to quietly ask him what time it was. George came over to crouch by the couch so they could talk without waking up John. He ran a hand through Alex’s hair and cupped his cheek, brushing over the lines left by the pillow and blanket. “It’s around 7:30. I figured I would just let y’all sleep until it was time to go grab some dinner.” 

As if on cue, John’s stomach grumbled and woke him up. George caught Alex from falling of the couch as John jerked up effectively ejecting him from his lap. His breathing was labored and there seemed to be tears in his eyes. Alex climbed back onto the couch. “Hey man, woah. What’s wrong? Everything ok?” 

“I just,” John sniffled, holding back tears, “it was just a bad dream is all. I’ll be fine. What time is it?” Even with the brave face he was putting on, he leaned into Alex and wrapped his arms around his midsection like Alex was the calm to his storm: a new feeling for Alex. 

George leaned in to kiss them both on the forehead. “I just told Alex, it’s about 7:30. I figured if y’all got up soon and got packed we could go grab some dinner and head on to the airport with plenty of time to be there when Lafayette lands.” 

John nodded his head where it was resting against Alex, not making a move to get up until George mentioned Laf. As if finally emerging fully from sleep, John unwrapped from Alex and immediately went over to put his stuff away without another word. George looked at Alex with concern evident on his features, but Alex didn’t have any answers for him so he just shrugged. 

Dinner was a quiet affair, John seemingly still lost in his own head while Alex and George tried to carry the conversation. The silence melted into nervous energy as they got parked in the airport and made their way to the incoming flight waiting area. Laf hadn’t had anything more than a small carry on when he left, and George assumed it would be the same when he came back. Alex had made himself comfortable reading a book, George was settled on his tablet on social media, but John was pacing from one end of the airport to the other as if his legs had a mind of their own. 

George didn’t realize what time it was until he looked up to see the board in front of him said that Laf’s flight had arrived and that John was missing in action. George shook Alex from his book, but before he had the opportunity to panic, Alex’s eyes lit up and he pointed to the incoming gate behind George. 

Alex could feel the excitement from yards away. John had taken off at a dead sprint from whatever part of the airport he had been in to jump into Lafayette’s waiting arms. Laf had spun him around, holding his tight against his body and kissed him chastely before they could catch their breath. Alex was glad he’d already had his phone out so that he could catch the Halmark moment for them as he and George walked to where they were standing. He couldn’t tell from that far away, but it looked as if John might have been crying again. 

Lafayette switched John from where he was holding him on his front to more of a piggy back so that he could greet George and Alex without losing contact with John. George kissed him deep and slow, solid and grounding after being away for so long. As Laf is leaning in to kiss Alex chastely on the lips and then twice on each cheek, George was picking up his carry on and speaking, “Ready to head home, baby boy?” 

Laf groaned in a way that would have sounded sexual had it not been covered by exhaustion. John leaned around to kiss his cheek before burying his face in Laf’s curls hiding a tired but content smile. Alex knew he probably needed to stop taking candids of the two of them, but dammit they should stop being so cute then. 

George led them out and into the car, everyone seeming to settle into more of a normalcy than they had felt in almost a full week. Laf laid John down in the backseat with Alex after a moment of protest from John before sitting up front with George. Alex placed a comforting hand on his leg. While Laf and George talked too quietly for them to figure out what they were saying, Alex took in John in the backseat. John was antsy still, knee bouncing up and down and hands clasped a little too firmly in his lap. “You ok over there?” Alex asked cautiously. 

John gave him a comforting smile as if Alex was the one behaving strangely. “Just a little… um… pent up. I was hoping that we’d get some alone time tonight, but it’s lookin’ like it’s gonna be a group straight to bed night. Which is fine, but…” he gestured at his lap and whimpered. Alex couldn’t stand being denied even a few days, much less a week, so he could empathize with how John was feeling. 

“Look on the bright side: if you wait until tomorrow, you’ll have his undivided attention and he won’t be too exhausted to actually make it fun,” Alex wiggled his eyebrows and John snorted, drawing the attention of the men up front. 

“What are you two up to?” Laf asked, turning around to see what they were doing. 

Alex grinned, holding his hands up in mock innocence. “We were just chatting! I figured that we were allowed to since y’all were being so squirrelly and secretive up there.” 

Laf narrowed his eyes, playfully suspicious, before turning around to continue his conversation with George. They were home before Alex knew it. Their bedtime routine was done in a comfortable silence; the only deviation from normal was that George seemed to hover over Alex a little more than usual while Laf went and helped John get ready for bed. They all appeared in George’s room with pajamas, glasses, extra blankets, and pillows, quickly piling into the bed together and getting comfortable. Alex thought he heard Laf say to John, “You sure you can wait another day, Jacky?” while running a hand suspiciously close to the waistband of John’s pants. 

John bit off a moan and nodded shifting his hips away from Laf. He was rewarded by Laf pulling him closer, and whispering about John being such a good boy. Alex looked away, giving them a moment of privacy even within the group. 

Alex was wondering what all would change now that they’d had a week of weird schedules and self-discovery and bonding. He worried that it would be strange, but Laf fit back in seamlessly like he always did, filling up a part of their hearts that they only vaguely knew was empty when he was away. Alex had a new appreciation for John and Laf and the nature of their relationship and loved them both a little more because of it if that was possible. He assumed that the first thing to change would be their schedules all going back to normal starting with a quiet bedtime. He was pleasantly surprised when he was proved wrong. 

After a moment of silence where they all settled in, George started singing softly: some lullaby with a southern drawl that Alex could get lost in. After the first time through, Laf’s voice joined George’s picking up the harmony of the lullabye. The two together sounded beautiful, and Alex forced himself to stay awake and appreciate the mixture as long as he could. His last thought before drifting off to sleep was that, regardless of the changes that might be coming, he was glad that his whole family was home. 

John woke up the next morning achingly hard but better rested than he had been all week. The even breathing and heartbeat beneath him clued him in to the fact that Laf was still asleep. Even shifting to move off of him was enough to make John have to hold back a moan as his morning wood dragged against Laf’s thigh. Just as John thought he had pulled free, Laf, still asleep, wrestled him back into his grip and pinned him in a cuddle to the mattress. John kissed his nose and then anywhere on his face that he could reach to try and wake him up gently. 

Laf opened one eye at a time, obviously disgruntled that he was waking up, but his expression softened when he registered that John was beneath him. “What’s got you all wiggly this morning, little one?” he asked voice still rough and deep from sleep, knowing exactly why John was restless and palming him through his pajama bottoms to prove it. 

John thrust up into his palm, gasping at the contact. “Marquis, please. I’ve been so good.” 

Laf leaned over to kiss his nose. “Of course, shhh. You have been so good. We gotta have breakfast first though.” John groaned, not really caring at all about breakfast when Laf was _finally_ home and in bed with him, but he also knew arguing was a moot point and wouldn’t get him what he wanted. Laf kneeled over him on the bed and kissed away his pout, rocking their hips together to torture John some more. John was excited to feel that Laf was just as ready to go as he was and chose to push him off so they could hurry up and eat downstairs. 

John ran to the fridge and pulled out bowls of fruit for them to eat. John was about to dig in when Laf cleared his throat from his seat, drawing John’s attention. He was looking at John expectantly and teased, “Little one, are you in so much of a rush that you’ve gotten self-sufficient? Don’t need me around anymore?” 

John shook his head with sincerity. Laf walked around to his seat, lifting him up and sitting him on the countertop in front of him. “Can I feed you, sweet one? I’ve missed you so badly.” 

John nodded, letting Laf take care of them both, alternating between feeding himself and John. John leaned forward to meet every bite halfway. After he was sufficiently full, John turned it into a game, licking and sucking on Laf’s fingers after every bite he was given. Laf got the message quickly, standing up to pull John’s hips flush against his. He tipped John’s chin up to kiss him, nipping his bottom lip to get him to open up and locking their lips together. 

They kissed in the kitchen until John thought he was going crazy and whined, rutting his hips forward to try to get Laf to give him any type of friction. Laf moved from kissing his lips to where his neck was exposed above the collar of his pajama shirt. “Marquis, _please_ …” John whined while Laf bit and sucked a mark in a spot that wouldn’t be able to be covered by anything but makeup. 

“So needy this morning. It’s like you haven’t seen me in a week or something,” Laf teased as he picked John up off the counter and carried him back upstairs. It was a slow progression, John hindering their progress by the fact that he couldn’t stop kissing him as they made their way up the stairs. Laf put his fingers in his mouth to mute him while they did their best not to disturb George and Alex on the way to Laf’s bedroom. 

Laf laid John on the bed, following him in one movement to pin him against the sheets and start pulling at the buttons on John’s shirt. John fumbled a little, arousal making him a mess below Laf, but managed to help Laf out of his top as well. Once his shirt was off, Laf pinned John’s hands to the mattress, “Can I tie you up and take care of you, little one? You get handsy when you’re desperate for me like this and I want to take my time taking you apart.” 

John relaxed into the mattress, moving his hands above his head in consent. He loved to be tied up, knowing that Laf was amazing with knots and would never overwhelm him in a bad way. Laf kissed his nose, getting up to find their lengths of rope before coming back to bed. John held still, only moving when Laf needed him to and told him as much. John felt the pull against his locked cuffs as Laf threaded through the hoops locking him into place. 

When he was done, Laf snapped a picture of John from the waist up to show off his elaborate rope work. John smiled, but turned his head to the side so his face wasn’t directly in the shot. 

Laf sat his phone to the side, and quickly pulled off his and John’s pants. He crawled on top of John, lightly tracing his hands up his sides, flicking his fingers over his sensitive nipples and placing a hand on John’s throat. He had planted one knee between John’s legs to give him some friction to work with. John’s moan was cut off by Laf kissing him before nosing down to place more marks on his neck and chest. Everytime Laf’s teeth found a new sensitive spot, John’s body pressed up against Laf’s thigh sending jolts of pleasure from his dick to his brain. John slowly began to rub himself off on Laf’s thigh, rolling his hips slowly to draw out the pleasure as long as possible. 

Laf moved his hands down to grip John’s hips and move him with a little more force and a little faster. “Marquis!” John gasped out as he quickly approached his first orgasm. 

“That’s right little one, chase your pleasure. I know you want it bad. Cumming in your shorts because you just can’t wait for me to fuck you. That’s alright; you can come as much as you want, but we aren’t stopping until I say so,” Laf moved his hips more aggressively in a way that he knew John loved. A mixture of the actions and his words had the desired effect and John came with a groan into the soft fabric of his underwear. 

Laf grinned and pulled off the shorts in question, using them to clean off John who was still unsurprisingly hard. John was one of those lucky men who could have multiple orgasms with no time in between, and Laf loved to use that to play into John’s love of feeling oversensitive. It was a win/win on all fronts. 

Before John could catch his breath from his first orgasm, Laf dropped between his legs to pepper his thighs with kisses and more marks. John tried to thrust up into the air, trying to find Laf’s mouth. Laf held down his hips and mouthed down his cock, reveling in the moan it drew from John’s lips. Without much ado, Laf licked from the base of his dick to the tip then sucked the head into his mouth. “God, Marquis, _yes_ ,” John moaned as Laf slid him fully into his throat and back out again. 

John was almost sobbing, his hips twitching up only to be held firm by Laf’s grip to the bed while Laf pulled out every trick he knew to send John spiraling closer back to the edge. With a few more skilled flicks of his tongue while John was engulfed in his mouth, John came again, shaking and pulling against the restraints. 

Letting him have a moment of rest, Laf rolled over to pull the lube out of the nightstand. He paused for a moment when he saw John’s favorite plug beside the lube and went ahead and brought it to the bed too. While John was still slightly dazed, he slicked up his fingers and started to work John open. Every small gasp and sharp intake of breath was encouragement for him to add another finger or switch up the speed. He could tell John was on the edge of pleasure and pain, his favorite place to be during sex, by the buildup of tears in his eyes and the fact that he was babbling happily about how good everything felt and how intense it was. Laf grinned, crooking his fingers just right to make John cry out. 

“What do you want next little one? You gotta tell me or I might not know what to do.” Laf teased. If John was in a more coherent headspace, he would have rolled his eyes, but he was way too far gone for that, instead asking nicely, Laf’s good boy out in full force. “Please fuck me Marquis. Want you inside me. Need to feel you please.” 

“Fuck you? Such language! I think I might wait to fuck you like you want. You like to wait like a good boy, don’t you?” Laf cooed, knowing that he could have said pretty much anything since John was more focused on riding his fingers than his actual words although he did reaffirm that he was a good boy and would wait as long as Laf told him. 

Laf hummed as he slicked up the butt plug and slid it in where his fingers used to be. John groaned at losing the movement, but settled down to look at Laf for guidance of what to do next. Laf brushed his face with his hand, loving the way he looked so disheveled but trusting. Laf squeezed just below John’s ears on both sides prompting him to open his mouth. Laf straddled his shoulders and slid in, John using his tongue and relaxing expertly as Laf fucked his face. John got off on pleasing others, and Laf could feel his hips grinding down on the bed as he moaned around Laf’s dick. “God baby. It’s like you were made to do this. Made to take my cock down your throat. _Oh GOD_ just like that, sweet one.” 

Laf slid in and out for as long as he could before he felt his own orgasm approaching. Not wanting it to be over just yet, he pulled out, holding John by the hair so that he wouldn’t lean forward to follow him. John left his mouth open, obscenely wet and ready in case Laf wanted to resume thrusting. Laf kissed it closed, shifting down the bed to pull out the plug and finally thrust home into John. Both of them moaned loudly, John rolling his hips to take Laf deeper until he was fully seated in him and just holding there, nursing bruises on John’s torso darker until he was begging Laf to move. 

Laf went slow, rocking into John so that they were both riding the edge and so that Laf could stay on top of John to make him feel closed in and protected. The key to John’s cuffs drug against his sternum and moved up closer to his mouth with each rough, slow thrust of Laf’s hips. John caught the key in his mouth and held it between his teeth, locking eyes with Laf and groaning. The sight of John biting the key and breaking beneath him was enough to finally push him over the edge. He thrust a few more times, riding out his orgasm and stroking John off one more time. John threw his head back and moaned as he came yet again, his body relaxing completely afterward. Laf pulled out, kissing John sensually to mask the hiss that he let out and his whimpers from feeling empty. 

Laf rested for a moment before padding to the bathroom. He came back out, taking a quick picture of John in his fully relaxed and debauched state before untying him and cleaning him up. It was a relatively silent process, the only sounds being the brushing of skin on skin and kisses as they settled into a post-orgasm haze. When they were cuddling afterward, John snuggled into his side. “I missed you, Marquis,” he said quietly. Laf held him a little tighter, excited to be home with his boy. “I missed you too. I love you, Jacky.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come yell at me on Tumblr ~~but not really because I am a fragile flower~~ : smilingsarah10. I promise I dont bite.


	4. Sex in Motion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is basically shameless porn that celebrates the differences in polyamorous power dynamics. I hope you enjoy!

“Everything I do just doesn’t _feel_ right… you know? Like, I’m painting with too much structure. But how do I show motion with no structure? How do you paint abstract sex? It’s just frustrating because this is only one week away. What do you think, Marquis?” John rambled while tucked into Laf’s lap in the studio. Laf had watched him throw away, scrap, or sell at least one new painting a day for the last two weeks while he tried to find the ‘perfect’ piece to display in the show. The theme itself was ‘Sex in Motion’ which was usually right up John’s alley as an artist. However, he had been assigned the abstract category, and while Laf knew he loved looking at abstract art, he hated painting in that style. It had been the topic of every work review that they had done together for two weeks. 

“I think that whatever you end up turning in is going to steal the show. Every piece you’ve thrown out has been more impressive than I’ve ever seen,” Laf cuddled John between his legs and John rolled his eyes and pushed against his knees playfully. 

“Thank you, Marquis, but you’re the most biased fan I have. I’m sure I will come up with something, I just have to do some more thinking. I’ll get it,” John thoughtfully stated, cogs of his brain whirling so fast smoke should have been pouring out his ears. 

Laf kissed him on the head before standing up, upsetting him from his lap. While they were righting themselves and stretching, getting ready to finish the review and get to work, Laf joked, “It’s a shame you can’t record what happens in between our sheets. _That_ would be a great example of ‘Sex in Motion’.” 

John laughed as he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. “Wouldn’t that be interesting, for sure.” 

* * *

Alex was sitting in his office working on finishing his most recent novel, feeling close to a break through, when John burst into his office practically yelling. “Alex,” he started, flailing around so much that he upset a pile of books in one corner of the room. He straightened it ack haphazardly, continuing, “ _oh my God_ , I had an epiphany. How would you feel about having sex with me?” 

Alex blinked twice, slowly, as if shutting and opening his eyes would bring him any type of clarity. With all the elegance and eloquence of a writer, he responded, “What?” 

“I _need_ you to fuck me. It’s for Art!” John was pulling him to his feet and carefully around the stacks of papers littering his office to get him out the door. Before Alex could think to ask where he was and why he wasn’t controlling John, Laf appeared in the doorway and helped Alex extract his hand from John’s death grip. 

“Jacky, is that any way to get someone to bed? Ask nicely, or you are going to have to find a different way to complete this project,” Laf scolded him, making John blush and turn sheepish in front of Alex’s eyes. 

Alex looked between the two of them waiting for an explanation. When it became apparent that none was coming, he asked, “What the fuck guys?” 

John seemed spurred on by Alex’s confusion. “Let me try again. My show is coming up. You know, the one about ‘Sex in Motion’? Well, I’ve hated every piece I have made up until this point. So Marquis and I were talking, and he said something along the lines of, ‘it’d be cool as shit if we could record our sex and make it into a painting,’ and I…” 

Laf cut in, “That’s not at all what I said or how I said it…” 

John was on a roll though, and just waved him off to continue while Alex remained confused looking, “AND I have been thinking about how that would be possible and decided I had the perfect way. But I’m gonna need you, Marquis, and Pappy’s help to complete my _vision_ , okay? Will you help?” 

Alex shifted his weight between his feet. Sometimes John would ask them to help with projects of his, but usually they weren’t that hands on. This seemed really… involved. Still, Alex really hated having to tell John ‘no’ so instead he sighed and asked, “And how would we be helping?” 

John looked to Laf for reassurance. At his exasperated nod, John started bouncing where he stood and talking quickly, “Well really all you’d all have to do is individually strip down naked, cover yourself in the different paints and supplies I have sat out, and have sex with me on top of the canvas I have laid out on the floor. Simple really.” 

Once again, Alex blinked heavily. Then he looked between Laf and John to see if maybe this was a joke. Seeing mostly a mixture of seriousness and excitement, he resigned. “George won’t be pleased if any of us play without his permission…” 

Laf rolled his eyes. “I already talked to him. We all have permission to play as long as it’s for John’s project. He’s excited to see what the heck the project is when he gets home. I’m not sure he realizes that John wants him to play too, but we will see all that later. Are you in or nah?” 

Alex finally caved completely. He would never pass up the opportunity to have an orgasm with his favorite people, no matter how unconventional it seemed at the time. He told them he’d meet them in the studio in a minute. John hadn’t looked so excited in a very long time, and it was hard to not match his level. Laf followed John out, presumably to go set up the studio for whatever was about to happen. 

Alex stripped down to his boxers and pulled his hair into a tight bun. He couldn’t help but wonder how serious John was about having sex in a bunch of paint. Maybe they were just going to roll around and pretend like they were banging? Who really knew? Alex took one last look in the mirror and sighed, pulling his boxers off and putting on his robe before heading into John’s studio.

Instead of the usual order of easels and clay benches and general clutter of the studio, everything had been pushed to the sides of the room to make way for a large canvas spread across the floor overtop of paper that extended past the edges to keep the amount of mess down and gave people places to stand that wasn’t on the canvas itself. Beside the paper on each side was more paint of different colors, textures, and shines as well as more glitter than Alex thought you could buy even in bulk. 

Laf was in his robe with his hair pulled back sitting on a stool off to the side taking a picture on his phone of the scene in front of him, an amused smile on his lips. John was standing completely naked looking at the paint like even with the selection in front of him, it still wasn’t enough to please him. When he looked up at Alex, he brightened. “Alex! You ready to get dirty?” He wiggled his eyebrows in a way that never failed to make Alex laugh. 

“So how exactly are we doing this?” Alex asked, confused as to why Laf was approaching him until he noticed that both John and Laf were already in their collars, and he had his in his hand to put it on him. 

As he was fastening it, Laf explained, “George said he would feel more comfortable if we were in our collars when he came home. I told him of course.” 

Laf retreated back to his perch on his stool as John explained to Alex, “So what I’m thinking is that we pick a few colors and glitters each and go wild with them all over our bodies except our dicks, and then just have at it. Laf’s gonna be on standby to help with lube and added paint and whatnot. Then when it’s his turn, you’ll do that. Then when Pappy gets home, we are all gonna have to convince him to play cause he is NOT gonna like the mess.” 

Laf cleared his throat, drawing John’s attention like you would an over eager puppy. When John’s head whipped around, Laf gestured to the paint cans. “Worry about George when he’s here, babe. You’ve got a very hot Alex in front of you right now to play with.” 

John blushed, but still took Alex’s hand, stripping him of his robe so that they were both standing naked. “What colors were you thinking?” Alex asked John cautiously. 

John had his hand splayed on the small of his back in a way that was both familiar and foreign to Alex. How long had it been since they had played around essentially alone? Longer than Alex could remember for sure. His hand felt warm and comforting, even if a little weird. Alex leaned into the touch, causing John to smirk. “I was thinking a range of fall colors. Maroons and greens and yellows and golds and browns. There’s a really nice forest green over there that would look great with the gold glitter paste on you,” John gently shoved him in the direction of the paints. Alex was about to start trying to spread paint on himself when he heard Laf tut from his stool. 

“Jacky, sweetie, why don’t you go _help_ Alex?” he whispered in John’s general direction. Alex was about to say that he didn’t need the help when he saw John blush again and was struck with the thought that Laf might be trying to silently communicate that John was nervous and needed some guidance. Alex looked at him to confirm, and Laf winked. Alex had never been one to give directions, but he also never backed down from a challenge. 

“Yeah, Jacky, I’m not really understanding the vision. I could use some help,” Alex prompted, pulling John back towards him. John stumbled a little, almost falling into Alex’s arms but managing to pull back at the last second. John looked to Laf for guidance, but Laf just tipped his head towards Alex. John swallowed, looking towards Alex like he just realized that they were about to have sex covered in paint like it wasn’t his idea. “You know I will not be at all upset if you decide that you’re uncomfortable with this, right? We can stop at any time…” 

John cut Alex off with a finger to his lips that moved to trace them once he was silent. From there, John gently traced his jawline, down his neck, across his adam’s apple, around his collar, and across his collarbones. The light touches were something that Alex wasn’t used to when he was in a scene, and the shivers it sent down his spine resonated in his dick. John chuckled, following the touches with chaste kisses, then bites, and finally hard enough to have left a mark if Laf hadn’t interrupted with a warning tone. “Jacky. Don’t you think you need some paint on you two first?” 

John whimpered, but dutifully pulled away. Alex could feel his eyes roaming down his body. It was almost nerve wracking to be scrutinized like that. He was about to say something when John finally looked away to scoop out some paint. “You ready, Alex? It’s gonna be a little cold.” 

Alex nodded, letting John start to rub him down with different shades of greens and browns. His hands rubbed into sore muscles as he went, peppering places with kisses before covering them with paint or glitter. When he was done, Alex was adequately covered, he looked to John to see what was going to happen next. John seemed to flail as far as what to do. Alex panicked a little, but Laf stepped in from the sidelines. “You want Alex to return the favor, little one?” 

‘Duh,’ Alex chided himself for not realizing that was the next logical step. John just looked excited that someone else had made the decision for him. Alex wanted to make him look like that too. He repeated the motions that John had done for him, all up and down John’s body. By the time he was covering John’s thighs in maroon and glitter, he couldn’t help but notice John’s growing erection. He had forgotten that he had such a nice penis really. Not too big, not too small. It had a nice curve and thickness. Alex had the overwhelming desire to be fucked: not a weird desire for him until he considered the partner that he was with. He realized that John had been watching him look at his dick. Both of them blushed, and Alex pulled his hands away. 

Laf sighed from the sidelines. Alex knew that he knew better than to try and give Alex a direct order: even after years of playing together, that never did anything but kill the mood and cause a fight. Instead, Laf instructed John. “Baby, why don’t you ask Alex what he would like to do? He looks like he might have an idea.” 

Alex flushed as John locked eyes with him. “Whatever you want, Alex. I’m all yours.” 

Alex had forgotten just how submissive John actually was behind closed doors until he was there, looking at John as he completely trusted him to make a decision. Alex could get off any way he wanted, and he hadn’t had that opportunity in ages. He smirked at John. “Can I ride you?” he asked simply, knowing the question would probably catch John off guard. 

John looked confused, “You don’t want to fuck me?” 

Alex laughed a little, tugging on his hair. “Is riding you not fucking you?” 

John groaned, seeming to revel in the feeling of his hair being pulled. Alex gently pushed him to the floor, crawling on top of him to kiss him while they were rubbing together, smearing paint and glitter across the canvas just like John wanted. A shift of their hips caused them both to moan and John to curse. “I forgot to prep you before we got painted up. I can’t just go in dry.” 

Alex rutted against them causing John to moan and lift up off the ground. He panted into John’s ear, voice breathy as the effects of their rubbing started to really affect him. “Is there a reason you can’t go in dry?” 

Laf came over to pour some paint in strategic places to enhance the art and heard John’s complaint. He chuckled before cooing, “Oh, but Jacky, you know how to prep someone with no hands. And Alex likes to feel it anyways.” 

Alex’s lust addled brain had a hard time keeping up with what Laf was insinuating, but John had been following perfectly if the way his dick twitched meant anything. John tapped Alex’s backside to get him to crawl up to where he was straddling his face. Alex complied, not sure how this was going to help him ride John, but enjoying the view of John’s face between his thighs regardless. 

John went to work licking from the base of Alex’s balls to the tip of his dick with such a light but firm pressure that Alex’s toes curled and he had to grab hold of the canvas to keep from tipping forward and smothering John. John smirked beneath him and went from languid licks to casually sucking his head or the shaft, even down to his balls. The noises that he was making were obscene, and Alex could feel himself blushing when he realized that part of the noises he was hearing was his own whines. 

Before he could figure out John’s pattern, he felt his hands on his ass, lifting him up so his tongue could dip lower. With a shout, Alex felt John’s tongue slip from his perineum to his entrance. He lapped there for only a moment before pushing his tongue in, exploring and probing while Alex tried not to come apart above him. Through lusty, hazy vision, Alex could see Laf going over to a bucket that looked different from the other paint ones and then walking around to where he couldn’t see him again because he was facing the wrong way. He was so focused on John’s ministrations that it came as a surprise when Laf was whispering in his ear. “John loves it when you pull his hair. And when he’s so pliant and needy beneath you, you can basically ride his face and he might even come untouched. It’s up to you.” 

Alex felt John moan as Laf did something behind Alex’s back. Alex moved his grip from the canvas to John’s hair, pulling while he rolled his hips to fuck himself on John’s tongue. He could feel John bucking his hips up behind him in time with the roll of Alex’s hips. Alex wanted to be fucked though, so after a few more rolls where the only sound in the room was their panting and moaning, Alex made Laf help him stand up so that they could switch positions. John already looked absolutely debauched, hair coming free of his ponytail holder and covered in Alex’s painted handprint, face flushed and wet from being between Alex’s thighs and body achingly hard. 

Alex took just one more second to stare at the sight of John laid out in front of him before straddling his waist. “You look so beautiful like this, Jacky. Laid out and waiting for me like _such_ a good boy. Are you ready to fuck me like you mean it?” 

John’s hips rose into the air, looking to find friction against Alex but only serving to make him chuckle. He kissed John passionately, the slide of their lips matching the slide of their torsos until Alex had enough. Before he could accidentally end the fun early, he pressed away from John and reached back to align himself with John. John was surprisingly lubed up, and Alex sent a silent thank you to Laf before pressing down and taking John fully in one thrust. Both John and Alex moaned, bodies tensing and relaxing, getting used to the feel of each other before Alex shifted the angle, searching for the best way to get himself off. John started to thrust up into him gently, and Alex pinched his side just hard enough to get his attention. With a flirty wink and a moan as he found the right spot, Alex managed to get out, “ _I’m_ riding _you_ remember?” 

John threw his head back, gripping Alex’s hips as he let him take control with intense counterthrusts and a hand on his chest. Alex rode him with disregard to John’s pleasure, although if the way he was squirming and cursing meant anything, he was in heaven as well. Alex was so lost in chasing his own orgasm that he didn’t realize how quickly it was approaching and with a shout he came all over John’s chest. John held him firm, fully seated until his orgasm was complete and John had also came with a whimper. 

They stayed together on the floor, John only pulling out when Alex was uncomfortable and then just cuddling together, until Laf cleared his throat. “John, love, should we move the canvas now and get set up for round two? You and Alex are going to get stuck to the canvas.”

Alex had almost forgot that Laf was in the room in his pot orgasm bliss. He scrambled to get off John, hearing the desire in Laf’s voice and not wanting to be more than an observer in whatever was about to go down. Before moving to get his robe, he helped John wobbly get to his feet. When they were both off to the side, Alex looked back at the canvas. It was pretty amazing, the striking fall colors taking shape in the form of handprints, the imprints of the curl of John’s hair, and various body imprints. 

John instructed them on how and where to move the giant canvas to not mess with the design, then helped Alex back into his robe. By the time they turned around, Laf was standing at the edge of the next canvas gesturing for John to come over and get started. Alex could feel the intensity of the room increase as the established dynamic took hold. Laf stood like you would expect a ruler: firm broad posture, a confident gaze, and no room left for mischief. The look he was giving John radiated disapproval although the mischief hidden there tainted the gaze to let both Alex and John know that this was a common scene for them. Alex looked over Laf’s perfectly sculpted body once more before taking a seat on a stool and then settling in to enjoy the show. 

* * *

Watching Alex ride John had been… Laf couldn’t really put a descriptor on it. Hot? Exhilarating? Excessively frustrating? Possibly infuriating? He wasn’t exactly sure. He had enjoyed it, but now, in the aftermath, he had the overwhelming desire to lay his claim to _his_ boy. John had locked eyes on him as he had fucked into Alex, and Laf had a hard time waiting for his turn and not ripping Alex off of John and taking him like he apparently wanted. He wouldn’t have been making _those_ eyes if he didn’t want it rough. But Laf had waited, letting it stew while Alex got his way. Then he had been _very good_ and remembered the purpose of the project and helped move their ‘art’ out of the way. But by the time John had re-robed Alex, Laf was done waiting. 

John waltzed up to Laf, pulling him across the paper surrounding the canvas to the paints. Laf tipped his chin up with a firm hand. “Was I reading those looks right, sweet one? Alex was nice, but that’s not what you really wanted was it?” 

Laf felt more than saw John’s shiver. Locking eyes with him, John licked his lips and nodded. “And you’re ok with doing it in front of Alex and covered in paint? Recorded forever on canvas?” 

“Marquis, please!” John groaned, looking at him with pleading eyes. 

Laf smirked, using his grip on John’s jaw to push his face away. “Of course mon amour. But you’re going to have to work for it,” he covered himself in black and gold paint before standing to one side of the canvas and beckoning to John, “You know what to do, Jacky. Whenever you’re ready.” 

Laf watched as John’s shoulders relaxed and his body responded in kind. He quickly put on a new layer of red paint: this one brighter and more of a deep scarlet than the maroon that was till drying on his skin. He covered it with the gold glitter paste before looking up to meet Laf’s gaze. Laf nodded almost imperceptibly, and the scene began. John dropped to his knees on the other side of the canvas, then planted his hands in front of him, arching his back to stretch before crawling on his hands and knees to about a foot in front of Laf. The trail of gold and scarlet handprints was almost intoxicating to see. Laf stepped forward, making sure that he was leaving foot prints, and tipped John’s gaze up from where it was locked on the floor. He watched as his hand left a distinct mark against John’s face as he rubbed into Laf’s palm. Laf could definitely get used to the visuals. 

“If you want it Jacky, you know what to do,” Laf whispered, tugging gently on John’s hair. 

John opened his mouth, on the cusp of doing what he knew would get him laid, but then freezing, eyes flickering to where Alex was sitting on the stool nearby watching with rapt attention. Laf gently squeezed his jaw, “Jacky, focus on me. You good?” 

“Green. Just… give me a second,” John held eye contact until he had taken a steadying breath. Then his eyes dropped back to the floor. Laf resumed his grip, keeping with the tone of the scene. 

“What is it you want little one?” Laf stated the question plainly, knowing the answer but unsure what method he would take to answer. He couldn’t help but smile when John opened his mouth and… _ohhh_

“Please, Marquis, please. I need to be fucked. I need you to take me, like only you know how. I promise I will be a good boy; I’ll be your good boy. Just please, Marquis, I need fucked,” John started begging. Laf let him go until he had scooted forward to where he could grab Laf’s legs to finish begging and mouth at his thighs and dick. 

“What a _naughty_ boy, you are today. You make me watch you have unrestricted playtime with Alex, then come grovel at my feet and beg me to fuck you when you still have his precum on your face?” Laf watched John blush beautifully, spreading down his ears, cheeks, and neck. Laf brushed his thumbs across his lips and flushed cheeks affectionately. 

“Marquis, please, I’ll do anything.” 

Laf walked forward, tipping John back on his heels and then to where he had to scramble back as Laf descended predatorily onto John, placing one of his legs between John’s and using one of his big hands to make John rut against his thigh. He nipped at the top of John’s collar. “How about I fuck you until you don’t know anything but me? Would you like that little one?” 

“Yes, Marquis, _God_ yes,” John no longer needed to be encouraged to rub against his thigh, rutting with abandon while Laf marked his neck and pulled on his neck or the ring of his collar. 

Laf reached down, cupping and then gently squeezing John’s balls until he whimpered. “Please,” he breathed out through clenched teeth. Laf shushed him, then called on Alex to bring him a towel and the lube. Alex stumbled off the stool, seemingly embarrassed that he had been so into their scene, but complying nonetheless. John, his beautiful boy, continued rutting against Laf as if nothing was different. 

Laf wiped off one of his hands, shifting John’s knee over his forearm so that he could work him open. John whimpered and Laf shushed him in a way by sliding in knuckle deep with one finger and immediately seeking out his prostate. Laf quickly added another finger, using his body weight to keep John from arching off his fingers. “You gotta’ hold still little one. If I don’t prep you, I might break you…” 

John reached out, pulling Laf into a passionate kiss before nipping at his earlobe, “Then break me, Marquis.” 

That was all that Laf could take. He slammed into John, the pace punishing and the force enough to leave John with canvas-burn where his back and ass met the floor. He cried out, clinging on to Laf and whispering encouragements to keep going. Laf made sure the angle was right to send John over the edge. John fell apart in his arms, and Laf didn’t stop until John was satisfied. 

When he pulled out, John whimpered, making grabby hands until Laf pulled him back up into his arms. “But Marquis, you didn’t have an orgasm?” 

“Some things are more important than an orgasm: like finishing a good scene based on when you’re ready instead of when you’ve came. Besides, we’ve got company,” Laf kissed John one more time before turning to face the door of the studio. John immediately got squirmy and asked to be sat down. “Pappy!” 

* * *

George had been concerned when he had gotten Laf’s initial text asking permission to play for John’s project. He had felt a little better when Laf had assured him that they would all be in collars when he returned him. Then, like a yo-yo, his mood had confused again when Laf had cryptically sent a message that said that Alex was so greedy sometimes and a winky face. So when Martha had given him the go ahead to leave the office early, he had taken the opportunity, gladly. 

He searched both playrooms and all the bedrooms of the house before he realized that they might be in John’s studio. When he knocked and no one answered, he let himself in and what a sight met him: all three of his boys were covered in paint and glitter while two of them were going to town on a giant canvas mat and the other sat off to the side, enjoying the view enough that he was lost in his own hand and didn’t notice George walk in. Greedy indeed. 

John seemed to be lost in the impressive pace that Laf was setting, but Laf noticed George come in almost immediately, tipping his head to acknowledge him. George nodded to John and made the sign that questioned if he was super deep in sub space. Laf shook his head no, and George gave his silent approval. He walked quietly over to Alex, catching his hand on a downstroke and surprising him. Alex blushed when George whispered, “I don’t think that touching yourself is contributing to this project, baby girl.” 

Alex groaned but removed his hand. George turned around as he heard the whine that signified Laf and John had finished. He turned around right as John realized he was there and lit up. “Pappy!” he exclaimed, trying to get away as Laf sat him down gently to make sure his legs were working before he let him stand on his own. 

George looked over his boys. All three had their hair up, covered from head to toe in paint and glitter and sweat. John was covered in Alex and Laf’s handprints and looked all too pleased about that. “Your suit is going to get all dirty if you keep it on. We can get your robe if you want?” 

George ruffled his loose hair. “Let you three traipse all over my clean house? I think not. We will all go immediately to the shower when this is over. Am I understood?” 

Alex and Laf responded with their respective, “Yes, Sir,” and “Yes, Your Excellency,” while John bounced on the balls of his feet. “Does that mean you’re going to play with me, Pappy?” 

George stripped off his suit jacket tossing it to the side. John stepped forward to start on the buttons of his dress shirt, but George stepped back, chuckling. “Of course I’m going to play with you Jacky. And you know I love it when you strip me, but not when you’re covered in paint.” 

John pouted, but dutifully stepped back so he wouldn’t make a mess of George’s dress clothes. All three of his boys watched with interest as he made a show of stripping. He didn’t often indulge them, but today was an exception. He went slowly, unbuttoning each button in turn at a leisurely, almost bored pace. When he got to the bottom, he rolled it off his shoulders leaving him standing in his undershirt and black suit pants. He folded his shirt, sitting it on top of his suit jacket. Before turning back around to face his boys, he made a point to roll and flex his shoulders and arms over his back. There was an immediate payoff when he heard Alex whimper at the sight. 

He went ahead and toed off his socks while he pulled his undershirt over his head. Those also got folded and sat on the stack. When he turned back around, his boys were on the edge of their seat looking over eager. George couldn’t help but gloat a little, making the action of taking off his belt way more vulgar than it needed to be, but enjoying the shiver that ran down Laf’s spine when he drew attention to the belt he was intimately familiar with. Finally, he shucked off his pants and boxers at the same time, letting his hard on spring free, and relishing in the gasp that it drew from his boys. Once they had enough time to appreciate his body, an action George would never get tired of, he cleared his throat to spur John back into motion.

John smiled wide, realizing that he was the only one in the room right now with permission to touch George, and wiggled and made grabby hands until Laf let go of his grip around his waist. John excitedly pulled George across the canvas to the paint. Once they were over there, George stopped John by pulling him flush against his body and kissing him breathless. He had just barely cupped John’s ass, readjusting his thigh so that it was hitched around his waist when he heard a groan and a whimper from across the room. He nosed John’s face down into his chest where he could bite and lick to his heart’s content while George dealt with the other two. He looked back over his shoulder and scolded, “You two already had your turns. If you can’t behave, and I mean _behave like good boys_ , I will kick you out. Understood?” 

He waited for them to respond in an affirmative before he turned back to John who was doing his best to draw George’s attention back to him. George, when asked to describe the nature of his relationship with Laf and John, usually used the example that Laf is like a big cat: wild, dangerous, only submits on his terms; meanwhile John is more like a kitten or a cub: still has his dangerous moments, but more playful, needed specific attention, and didn’t have nearly the same claws as the big cat. Which meant that John could have bit into his chest as hard as he wanted and George’s pain tolerance would probably not have even registered it. It didn’t make the gesture any less endearing though. 

George pulled John by the hair, adjusting his grip so that he wouldn’t be in any sort of bad pain after his scene with Laf. “We should probably put on some paint first, right?” George asked when his grip didn’t stop John’s hands from roaming around his body. John looked up at George with big eyes. It really wasn’t fair how innocent he could manage to look even when he was covered in paint and tattoos. 

He started to work the paint and glitter onto George: he picked a deep sapphire blue and a shade of cream with an iridescent glitter built in. He covered himself back in the red and black from before, highlighting with red glitter. When they were both doused, he pulled George flush against him and asked, “So, Pappy, how do you want me?” 

George considered for a moment what he would find aesthetically pleasing if he were looking at this sort of thing in an art gallery. “What have you done so far? I think I might want you on your knees. The difference in our body sizes would make that very appealing, don’t you think?” 

John didn’t answer, instead smearing his hands with paint off of George and himself before dropping to his hands and knees. “You could use my mouth first?” John asked, still managing to sound much too innocent for what he was saying. George stepped forward, pushing the flyaways out of his hair, watching as his paint covered that of Alex and Laf’s before his. 

He made sure to grab the other side of John’s face to contrast what looked like an earlier mark from Laf. He gently squeezed, watching as John’s mouth opened as he begged with his eyes to be fucked. _Insatiable_ , George thought to himself as he slowly entered John’s mouth. John was skilled with his tongue, drawing George in further until his nose was buried in his groin and he was gagging slightly. George squeezed John’s shoulder and cursed a bit at the effect the gagging had on him. He should be better at controlling himself; he was the most experienced one in the room, but then John’s tongue was moving and George had to pull out to get his bearings. “Someone’s been practicing?” George teased, wiping John’s lips as he broke into a sloppy smile. 

George walked around John, pushing his shoulders down until his face was against the mat. “Can you be a good boy and hold yourself just like this?” George asked, playfully swatting John’s ass when he wiggled. John nodded, looking at George over his shoulder. George dropped to his knees, straddling John’s legs so that he was in line with his hole. George thrust between John’s ass cheeks, enjoying the slide and the shivers from John who knew what was coming but not when. “Shhh, you’re doing such a good job little one. Just relax and let me do the work.” 

John groaned, moving his arms to cradle his head as he waited impatiently for George to finally thrust into him. George rubbed comforting circles into the back of John’s hips before lining up with his hole and pressing in. The lube had dried a little bit, but the drag was just on the good side of a burn and George moaned, grabbing one of John’s shoulders for leverage while slowly rocking his hips to keep the pace almost unbearably slow. John cried out as the drag fell across his prostate, his body shaking just a little underneath George. As George increased the pace, John started to sink closer to the floor until he was lying flat while George took him from behind. 

George rolled them over onto their sides in more of a spooning position, and hooked John’s leg back over George’s thigh. From there, he reached around and started casually stroking John’s dick. John whimpered, slowly starting to hit the point of over sensitivity, but thrust up into George’s hand as best he could. George chuckled, nosing at a clean spot behind John’s ear before biting down. “Color, John,” Laf called from the sidelines. 

George looked at John’s face and saw tears forming at the corner of his eyes. George immediately stopped thrusting and waited for John’s answer. John rocked back, frustrated that George had stopped, before moaning out, “Green, please don’t stop, please. Feels so good, feel so full, wanna cum please!” 

George smirked and went back to doing exactly what he was doing before, but with more force. He felt his own orgasm approaching and took a moment to warn John. “Now or never little one.” 

John didn’t need any more encouragement and shot off with a shout in George’s hand. George, without thinking, held it up for him to clean with his tongue while he chased his own orgasm in John. He came soon after, rolling onto his back and pulling John onto his chest. John only minimally protested, complaining about the taste of the paint and the fact that cuddling wasn’t part of sex so they couldn’t do it on the canvas. George kissed his forehead. “I don’t think I need to remind you how important aftercare is, do I, Jacky?” 

John grumbled but let it go, knowing that George was right. They laid there in the afterglow until Laf stuck his head into George’s line of sight. “I snuck and got your robe and old slippers, Your Excellency. Can we all go shower now?” 

George accepted the painting towel from Laf to get off the majority of the excess paint before he put on his robe and slippers. Laf and Alex were both extremely worked up, so George doubted this was going to be an innocent shower. It was just a good thing that he had a pretty short refractory period. 

* * *

John was on cloud nine. Not only had he gotten his projects done for the day, but he also got laid by all three of his favorite people and they had stopped before he got too over sensitive which definitely meant it was a special occasion. He considered marking it on the calendar and celebrating it annually: Bang John Day! He liked the ring to that. 

He was a little disgruntled as Laf helped him shakily to his feet while George put his robe on and discussed something about a shower. John looked down at his body. He was covered in different shades of drying and dried paints, and he knew as an artist that they would _never_ get the glitter off of their skin or out of their hair, but _Lord_ , he had never had a more satisfying turnout for an art project. 

Laf kissed his forehead, drawing his thoughts away from the canvases and back into the present. “You in there, little one? You ready for a shower?” 

John leaned up on his tiptoes to kiss Laf’s nose. “Of course, Marquis. My shower? Yours?” 

Laf smirked, causing John to shiver. That smirk had every possibility to mean that they weren’t as done for the day as John had anticipated. Laf finally answered, “Neither. George’s.” 

When they got into George’s bathroom, George and Alex were already in the shower. John grinned at the ridiculous amount of beauty products littered on the shelves and floor in the shower that was as large as most people’s bathroom. Laf stripped off their robes and slippers before ushering John into the shower. He and Alex always ended up in the middle when they took group showers so they wouldn’t be hit in the face by the spray of the water that was set up high for the two taller partners. Alex immediately started washing John down using Laf’s bodywash, paying extra attention to the places with multiple layers of paint and being gentle with the spots that John could feel canvas burn forming on. While Alex took care of his body, George and Laf were both working on their hair, picking out the paint and making sure that it was as clean as possible. When Alex was done washing John, John returned the favor. It was always nice to get the opportunity to clean up the messes you made, and John would never pass up the opportunity to get his hands on any one of his naked partners. 

As he was washing him off, John couldn’t help but notice that Alex was surprisingly hard again. John leaned over his shoulder and asked Laf permission to play. Laf looked at him confused until he saw where John was cleaning. Laf leaned down close to his ear, “You will have to ask Pappy. Don’t get your hopes up too high though, little one. We all have had a busy day already.” 

George looked down to where they were whispering. He cocked his eyebrow at John and simply stated, “Again? You want more?” He laughed in a dark way, and John couldn’t help but shiver. 

George cut the water off. “Alexander, on your knees. John, you’re going to ride Alex facing away from him,” George waited for them to get in place. Alex grabbed the spare lube from one of the shower’s shelves, and John slid onto him easily. He was sore, his things burning a little as Alex filled him up. George gave them more instructions. “Baby girl, you’re not allowed to cum until Laf does. Jacky, you need to get off at least three times before we were done of Laf gets to take away your orgasms for as long as he wants.” 

John cringed, knowing how torturous Laf would make a period of denial while Alex complained that Laf would last forever. While Alex was talking, the angle shifted, and Alex bounced against John’s prostate. John came groaning as he rode out the sensations. Alex sobbed behind him, “ _Jacky_ , you’ve gotta warn me before you do that or I’ll get in trouble.” 

“Sorry baby girl but I have other plans for John’s mouth,” George continued to smirk while he nudged Laf forward, “Jacky, why don’t you show your Marquis how good you are now that you’ve practiced?” 

John blushed as he was presented with Laf’s cock. Laf caressed his face, the comfort welcome, before John sucked his thumb into his mouth doing his best to make Laf proud. Laf pulled his thumb up and pressed down slowly, causing John to rise and fall and Alex to groan, each shift making him twitch against John’s prostate. Laf chuckled at Alex’s distress. “You ready little one? You remember the way to tap for a safeword?” 

“Three quick taps is pause, five quick taps is red?” John tried to remember. Usually, if his mouth was occupied, his hands were restrained so he didn’t have to use the code, but he did vaguely remember it. Apparently he was right, since Laf just ruffled his hair and used his thumb to open John’s mouth. He started with short thrusts, letting John do most of the work with his tongue. Every thrust sent John tipping back onto Alex and caused Alex to whimper. He got a slight break when Laf switched to long thrusts into John, where John was deep-throating him and serving as little more than a cockwarmer. 

It was during one of these periods where his throat was stuffed full that John noticed Laf twitch forward and moan. John looked up to see George’s hand wrapped around Laf’s throat. Because of the moans coming out of Laf’s mouth, it wasn’t hard to tell where his other hand was. All of the sudden, Laf was bent forward, pulling out just a little so that he could bend over John. John felt Laf’s cock twitch as he stood back up and was thrust forward with force into John’s mouth as John fell backwards onto Alex. 

“Sir, please, I can’t wait, I’m not gonna make it… I need it please,” Alex babbled from underneath John. His desperation did weird things to John’s head, making him dip into subspace faster than he was used to. 

George managed to get out, ‘You know what happens when you don’t do what I say. Up to you Alexander.” 

Alex sobbed into John’s back. In a moment of strange camaraderie Laf reached past John and rubbed Alex’s head. “Color, Alex.” 

“Green, _Fuck_ green. Just, _shit_ , please hurry up,” Alex whined out, reaching around to give John a handjob and bring him to another orgasm. 

John moaned around Laf’s dick causing him to curse and shift his hips forward. George seemed to pick up the pace after that, thrusting hard into Laf to cause a chain reaction for the other two boys. As the pace picked up, Alex’s begging magnified. John could feel his desperation and was sympathetic to his plight. He had never had more than six orgasms in a day and was feeling exhausted. His jaw had gone slack and there was barely any drag when Alex thrust into him. Alex seemed to notice John get lost in the haze and he started biting the back of his neck. The sharp pain kept John alert, as Alex whispered, “Come one, John. Just one more. You can do it.” 

Alex had taken to just squeezing the over sensitive head of John’s penis to encourage him to cum faster. With barely any warning, Laf switched from stroking John’s hair to holding him taught against his hips while he came down his throat. That feeling set both John and George off, both of them moaning, the sounds echoing in the shower. Which meant that Alex, finally, put both of his hands on John’s hips and orgasmed, shaking and shouting things that weren’t even real words. When he was finally done, George turned the shower back on, sitting Alex and John to the side where they could cuddle and rest while he washed Laf and walked him through their aftercare routine. 

John had almost fallen asleep, being Alex’s big spoon while he babbled about whatever it was he was thinking and feeling, when strong arms lifted them both off the floor. Laf pressed John’s back into the cool shower wall while he massaged soap into John’s sore muscles. “You did such a good job today little one. You were so good and felt so good. How are you feeling? Am I missing any sore spots?” 

John shook his head and buried it into Laf’s neck. “Bed, Marquis, please?” 

Laf kissed John’s nose as he toweled both of them off. “Soon, sweet one. Pappy ordered pizza so we will eat and go to bed. Want me to put your hair up so it doesn’t dry icky?” 

John shook his head, so Laf just towel dried it and carried them to his room. “I’m going to sit you down on the bed for a second, okay?” Laf gently laid John on his bed. John liked to wear a particular sweater of Laf’s after really intense scenes, so Laf had ordered them in bulk. He dressed both himself and John in silk boxers and those sweaters. John pulled Laf into the bed with him and wrestled him under the covers. Laf, highly amused, allowed himself to fall against John’s chest. “Mon chou, we have to go get dinner. You have to eat so you can get big and strong.” 

“Marquis, I don’t think I’m getting any bigger,” John mumbled into his back. He really just wanted to go to sleep right there in Laf’s bed. Laf pulled them both up. “How do you know if you haven’t tried?” 

John giggled and let Laf carry him downstairs. He supposed he could stay awake for long enough to eat. 

* * *

John’s exhibit was a hit and absolutely made the week of soreness totally worth it. Laf had even let him wear the suit he wanted instead of an actual suit. His arms were on display, the sleeves of his suit ripped off in an all too pleasing way. The others looked very put together as usual, but everyone was telling John he looked the best. Edgy. The compliments were going to his head. 

He walked in front of the giant canvases they had made. Supposedly, they had taken the art world by storm. People said that art where the body was both the brush and canvas was the new frontier of the artistic movement. Apparently, their art was going to sell for a frankly ridiculous amount of money. John had asked for them back, but his agent assured him that the paycheck would be worth losing the art. John wasn’t sure that was true, but Laf had promised they would make more if he wanted and that was enough to sate him for the moment. Besides, the canvases weren’t even his favorite pieces in the art show. 

John walked among the photography section. The idea to place small cameras around the studio had been a last minute thing, but the photographs they took were well worth it. There were close ups oh his moments with Alex, Laf’s domination, and the expanse of George’s muscles, all covered with paint and glitter. John had cropped them so that their faces weren’t shown in any of the photos. They were absolutely stunning, and people were as in love with them as they were the canvases. George had promised that there would be a punishment for not letting them know they were being photographed, but even that was worth it. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Find me on tumblr @smilingsarah10


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